Gynecological cancers on a chip: status, advances, and future

Gynecological cancers, including cervical cancer, ovarian cancer, and endometrial cancer, negatively influence women’s physical and mental wellbeing. Modeling disease progression could enable new therapeutic interventions. The development of microfluidic technology has led to the creation of gynecological cancer-on-a-chip (CoC) models. Since the tumor microenvironment (TME), along with other physiological variables such as microvasculature, shear stress due to blood flow, and biological barriers, can be simulated in a chip setup, these factors can be used to model how tumor cells cross blood vessels and migrate to invade other organs. Therefore, fluidic chips, integrating organoids and other biofabrication concepts, provide a fresh approach to elaborate tumor molecular mechanisms and treatment strategies since physiological variables (signaling and cellular processes) can be controlled. Although gynecological cancer chips have many advantages, the number of related studies is limited. Currently, the research landscape is primarily focused on TME reconstruction and drug screening, while the incorporation of tissue-derived samples and organoids has yet to gain traction. This review summarizes the current status of research, along with technical progress and future challenges, thus providing a comprehensive reference for further research in this field.