{
  "id": 19725836,
  "title": "Organ-on-chip shows how tumors interact with nerves and blood vessels",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/12/organ-on-chip-shows-how-tumors-interact-with-nerves-and-blood-vessels",
  "topic": "health",
  "section": "Health & Medicine",
  "published": "2026-11-12T23:20:06.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Medical Xpress",
    "slug": "medical-xpress",
    "url": "https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-11-chip-tumors-interact-nerves-blood.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Researchers at Linköping University in Sweden, in collaboration with colleagues at Politecnico di Milano in Italy, have developed a miniature model of head and neck cancer called an organ-on-a-chip. This device allows scientists to investigate how tumors grow and interact with their environment, including blood vessels and nerves.\n\nThe chip, about the size of a postage stamp, was created by layering a network of cells with blood vessel-like structures and nerve cells, all within an extracellular matrix that mimics the natural environment of the tumor. The matrix's composition significantly influences how cancer cells behave and respond to treatments.\n\nThe model demonstrates that tumors in contact with nerves grow larger but are less likely to spread to blood vessels. Conversely, tumors that invade blood vessels are more likely to spread to other parts of the body. The findings suggest that nerves play an active role in regulating tumor behavior and aggressiveness, as well as cancer-related pain.\n\nThis organ-on-a-chip technology could be adapted to study other solid tumor types where interactions with surrounding structures are crucial. Beyond advancing our understanding of cancer, the method may also prove useful for drug screening and evaluating treatment responses.",
  "summary": "On an organ-on-a-chip, researchers can now explore how tumors grow and interact with their surroundings. The chip, a small plate where cancer cells, nerves and blood vessels grow, was developed by researchers at Linköping University, Sweden, in collaboration with colleagues at Politecnico di Milano in Italy. It is described in an article published in the journal Proceedings of the National…",
  "key_points": [
    "Researchers create organ-on-a-chip to study head and neck cancer interactions.",
    "Tumors in contact with nerves grow larger but are less likely to spread to blood vessels.",
    "Organ-on-chip technology could advance cancer understanding and drug screening."
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}