Presentation: 2025 ND EPSCoR Annual conference 

October 21, 2025, NDSU Memorial Union, Fargo, North Dakota

Establishing a Patient-Derived Cancer Cell Line Bio-Bank toward Personalized Medicine for Metastatic Prostate Cancer

Prostate cancer is the second leading cause of cancer-related death in men, with only a 30% 5-year survival rate when it metastasizes. Despite the great success in detecting and treating early primary tumors, tumor heterogeneity and a lack of efficient model systems to study metastatic prostate cancer contribute to a low survival rate. We aim to address these urgent needs by utilizing patient-derived cancer cells and the state-of-the-art 3D in vitro model. Cancer cells proliferate, adapt to their environment, and spread to adjacent or distant organs; multicellular communication plays a critical role during these processes. While the importance of using a 3D co-culture system is largely acknowledged in cancer research, only ~30% of in vitro research is done using such a system due to a lack of experience and availability. In collaboration with Sanford Hospital, we successfully established 11 patient-derived cell lines, comprising 7 from the primary site, 3 from the metastatic bone site, and 1 from the lymph node. The tumor samples were enzymatically digested and cultured under ideal conditions to support steady growth/proliferation. To confirm the cell line’s identity and viability, cells were stained with DAPI, CK19, and Ki67. Further characterization included staining for prostate-specific antigen, prostate-specific membrane antigen, and androgen receptor. PC3 and PCa 2b commercially available cell lines were used as positive and negative controls. Based on these results, we created a comprehensive biobank catalog. These cell lines will serve as a foundation for future studies looking into responses to different microenvironments and drug delivery strategies.