Abstract 2497: A human pcVMT platform for personalizing chemotherapy route and regimen selection in peritoneal carcinomatosis
Abstract Peritoneal carcinomatosis (PC) is a clinically aggressive metastatic disease state marked by diffuse peritoneal involvement and limited responsiveness to systemic chemotherapy due to poor penetration across the mesothelial barrier. Although intraperitoneal (IP) therapy offers a mechanistically rational alternative, clinicians currently lack human-relevant platforms to determine which patients will benefit most from systemic therapy, IP therapy, or a combination of both.To address this unmet need, we developed a dual-chamber peritoneal carcinomatosis vascularized micro-tumor (pcVMT) platform that recreates a human mesothelial-lined peritoneal cavity adjacent to a perfused vascular network, enabling patient-specific, route-specific chemotherapy testing. The pcVMT supports stable vascular perfusion, intact mesothelial barrier function, and tumor adhesion and invasion using both PC cell lines and patient-derived peritoneal metastases. High-resolution confocal imaging confirms robust tumor-stromal-vascular organization across multiple clinical samples.The platform facilitates testing of clinically relevant regimens, including vascular FOLFOX, IP paclitaxel, and bidirectional systemic+IP delivery, and permits real-time visualization of route-dependent tumor responses within each patient’s microenvironment. Early patient-derived experiments demonstrate feasibility of individualized assessment, including successful IP paclitaxel administration with observable changes in tumor architecture.By enabling controlled comparison of systemic, IP, and combined delivery strategies within a physiologic human peritoneal model, the pcVMT provides a precision-oncology tool designed to identify the most effective therapy and delivery route for each patient. Ongoing studies will expand patient-derived testing and explore correlations with clinical decision-making to guide personalized treatment selection and future systemic-IP combination strategies in PC. Citation Format: Aaqil M. Khan, Stephanie J. Hachey, Vinodh Kumar Radhakrishnan, Fatemeh Tajik, Melanie Roman, Christopher C. Hughes, Maheswari Senthil. A human pcVMT platform for personalizing chemotherapy route and regimen selection in peritoneal carcinomatosis [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2026; Part 1 (Regular Abstracts); 2026 Apr 17-22; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2026;86(7 Suppl):Abstract nr 2497.
Authors
- Fatemeh Tajik (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9764-2947)
- Aaqil Khan (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0008-4689-769X)
- Stephanie J. Hachey (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0314-3459)
- Maheswari Senthil (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0339-8558)
- Vinodh Kumar Radhakrishnan (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6376-7925)
- Melanie Roman
- Christopher C. Hughes
Institutions
- University of California, Irvine (US)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Cancer Research
- Published
- 2026-04-03
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1158/1538-7445.am2026-2497
- Primary Topic
- Intraperitoneal and Appendiceal Malignancies
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00