LAUSR

The tumor microenvironment (TME) is the environment around the tumor, including blood vessels, immune cells, fibroblasts, signaling molecules, and the extracellular matrix (ECM). Owing to its component interactions, the TME influences tumor growth and drug delivery in a highly complex manner. Although several vascularized cancer models have been developed to mimic the TME in vitro, these models cannot comprehensively reflect blood vessel-tumor spheroid interactions. Here, we present a method for inducing controlled tumor angiogenesis by engineering the microenvironment. The interstitial flow direction regulates the direction of capillary sprouting, showing that angiogenesis occurs in the opposite direction of flow, while the existence of lung fibroblasts affects the continuity and lumen formation of sprouted capillaries. The vascularized tumor model shows enhanced delivery of anticancer drugs and immune cells to the tumor spheroids because of the perfusable vascular networks. The possibility of capillary embolism using anticancer drug-conjugated liquid metal nanoparticles was investigated using the vascularized tumor model. This vascularized tumor platform can aid in the development of effective anticancer drugs and cancer immunotherapy. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.