Subcutaneous (SC) tumor models have played an important role in cancer drug discovery for many years. The use of these models is a critical step along the drug discovery cascade. In vivo studies utilizing SC tumor models are incorporated into pharmacodynamic assays to ensure target inhibition and adequate inhibition of target over time.
In addition, the correlation between target inhibition and anti-tumor activity is often an important dataset for lead optimization and triggering IND-enabling studies. SC tumor models are used to screen for breadth of test agent sensitivity, dose response evaluations, and dose scheduling, among other potential uses.
At Covance, we offer more than 450 syngeneic and human tumor xenograft models, including drug-resistant and specialty models, and we are continually validating new models. Caliper-based methods are used to evaluate tumor growth of our SC tumor models and additional imaging methods can be incorporated to test functional and mechanistic endpoints.
Our list of existing subcutaneous tumor models covers a wide range of more than 30 histotypes including: