Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42624885›Full record

ArticleNPJ precision oncology2026

Tumor slice cultures enable rapid ex vivo profiling of patient-specific drug sensitivity in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma.

Benjamin Heckelmann, Daniel Fetzner, Olga Lapshyna, Ashinikumar Singh Hidam, Annika Brauer, Anna Maxi Wandmacher, Benedikt Färber, Jannis Duhn, Meike Ten Winkel, Louisa Bolm and 11 more

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in NPJ precision oncology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

21 authors.

Benjamin HeckelmannDepartment of Surgery, University of Luebeck, Luebeck, Germany.
Daniel FetznerDepartment of Surgery, University of Luebeck, Luebeck, Germany.
Olga LapshynaDepartment of Surgery, University of Luebeck, Luebeck, Germany.
Ashinikumar Singh HidamDepartment of Surgery, University of Luebeck, Luebeck, Germany.
Annika BrauerInstitute for Experimental Tumor Research, Kiel University, University Hospital Schleswig-Holstein, Kiel, Germany.
Anna Maxi WandmacherInstitute for Experimental Tumor Research, Kiel University, University Hospital Schleswig-Holstein, Kiel, Germany.
Benedikt FärberDepartment of Hematology and Oncology, University of Luebeck, Luebeck, Germany.
Jannis DuhnDepartment of Surgery, University of Luebeck, Luebeck, Germany.
Meike Ten WinkelDepartment of Surgery, University of Luebeck, Luebeck, Germany.
Louisa BolmDepartment of Surgery, University of Luebeck, Luebeck, Germany.
Kim HonselmannDepartment of Surgery, University of Luebeck, Luebeck, Germany.
Steffen DeichmannDepartment of Surgery, University of Luebeck, Luebeck, Germany.
Christoph RöckenInstitute of Pathology, Kiel University, University Hospital Schleswig-Holstein, Kiel, Germany.
Darko CarstvenDepartment of Internal Medicine I, University of Luebeck, Luebeck, Germany.
Jens MarquardtDepartment of Internal Medicine I, University of Luebeck, Luebeck, Germany.
Corinna KeberInstitute of Pathology, University Hospital of Giessen-Marburg, Marburg, Germany.
Timo GemollDepartment of Surgery, University of Luebeck, Luebeck, Germany.
Susanne SebensInstitute for Experimental Tumor Research, Kiel University, University Hospital Schleswig-Holstein, Kiel, Germany.
Tobias KeckDepartment of Surgery, University of Luebeck, Luebeck, Germany.
Ulrich WellnerDepartment of Surgery, University of Luebeck, Luebeck, Germany.
Rüdiger BraunDepartment of Surgery, University of Luebeck, Luebeck, Germany. ruediger.braun@uksh.de.

Funding

Else Kröner-Fresenius-Stiftung # 2023_EKEA.16
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is characterized by chemotherapy resistance, partly driven by its dense and heterogeneous tumor microenvironment (TME). Since most preclinical PDAC models inadequately capture the tissue architecture, their translational value for therapeutic testing remains limited. This study investigated organotypic tissue slice cultures (OTSCs), which preserve the multicellular tissue architecture, as a rapid platform for personalized ex vivo drug response profiling. OTSCs were generated from 27 resected PDAC specimens. Following workflow establishment and quality control, ex vivo drug profiling was performed in 15 patients using gemcitabine, gemcitabine plus paclitaxel, and FOLFIRINOX. Treatment response was assessed by quantitative digital pathology, and an ex vivo sensitivity score (EVSS) was defined. Clinical correlations with longitudinal follow-up were assessed in ten patients. OTSCs preserved tissue architecture and revealed interpatient heterogeneity. In exploratory analyses of clinically matched patients, ex vivo sensitivity was associated with prolonged PFS (median 445 vs. 141 days, log-rank p = 0.0027; HR per 10 EVSS points 0.625; 95% CI 0.484-0.807, p = 0.00032), while lower preoperative CA 19-9 levels and higher GATA6 expression were associated with higher EVSS and longer overall survival. OTSC-based profiling enables rapid, patient-specific drug response assessment in PDAC and supports evaluation as a functional stratification tool.

Identifiers

PMID42624885
PMCPMC13494009

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.