Development of
biomaterials mimicking
tumor and its microenvironment has recently emerged for the use of drug discovery,
precision medicine, and
cancer biology. These biomimetic models have developed by reconstituting
tumor and stroma cells within the 3D extracellular matrix. The models are recently extended to recapitulate the in vivo tumor microenvironment, including biological, chemical, and mechanical conditions tailored for specific
cancer type and its microenvironment. In spite of the recent emergence of various innovative engineered
tumor models, many of these models are still early stage to be adapted for
cancer research. In this article, we review the current status of
biomaterials engineering for
tumor models considering three main aspects - cellular engineering, matrix engineering, and engineering for microenvironmental conditions. Considering
cancer-specific variability in these aspects, our discussion is focused on
pancreatic cancer, specifically pancreatic ductal
adenocarcinoma (PDAC). In addition, we further discussed the current challenges and future opportunities to create reliable and relevant
tumor models.