This study was conducted to establish a feasible intraperitoneal xenograft model in nude mice which mimicked the dynamic progression of human
ovarian cancer and to explore its potential for preclinical trials. A human ovarian
tumor line SKOV3 was originally injected s.c. to develop
tumors; then the
tumors were harvested and minced into small particles for i.p. inoculation in three groups of nude mice which would be monitored consecutively. The intraperitoneal
carcinomatosis and relevant organs were collected for histopathological dynamic comparison and CA125 immunohistochemical staining 7, 21 and 49 days after inoculation. An additional experiment with
cisplatin sensitivity test was performed and
tumor tissues were observed for apoptosis-Hoechst assay. The intraperitoneal
carcinomatosis had a rapid progression which resulted in extensive dissemination on the peritoneal surfaces and invasion into abdominal lymph nodes, livers, pancreas and spleen.
Tumor tissues revealed similar morphological features of primary
tumor from which SKOV3 derived and part of in vivo
tumor mass was positive for CA125.
Cisplatin could significantly inhibit the intraperitoneal
carcinomatosis growth. This model may provide a valuable platform to study the
biological properties of
ovarian cancer as well as to test new therapeutic strategies in preclinical trials.