Patent ID: 7977041

Claim:
A method for evaluating the efficacy of one or more therapeutic compounds or candidate therapeutic compounds with respect to at least one tissue from an animal, said tissue being suspected of being abnormal, cancerous or pre-cancerous, the method comprising the steps of: (A) obtaining a sample of said suspected tissue from said animal, wherein said tissue is dissociated mechanically by dividing the tissue into tissue sample portions and not dissociated by chemical or enzymatic means, wherein said tissue comprises one or more types of cells, (B) implanting each of said tissue sample portions within a three-dimensional physiological matrix, wherein each of said portions is essentially completely submerged within said matrix, said matrix being adapted and arranged for measuring one or more parameters of the behavior of said tissue portion and said cells, wherein the physiological matrix comprises at least one collagen fiber component adapted and arranged such that the cells, if abnormal, cancerous or pre-cancerous, are enabled to grow away from the sample portion into the matrix, and wherein said collagen fiber component comprises at least one natural or synthetic collage fiber and is present in a density of from 1.3 mg/ml to 3.3 mg/ml, (C) providing nutrition to said tissue sample portions and said cells so that parameters can be measured, (D) providing at least one of said one or more therapeutic compounds or candidate therapeutic compounds to said tissue sample portions and said cells, (E) incubating said tissue sample portions and said cells under approximate physiological conditions with said one or more therapeutic compounds or candidate therapeutic compounds for a period sufficient to obtain measurements with respect to said one or more parameters, and (F) measuring one or more of said parameters to obtain data regarding the behavior of said tissue sample portions and said cells with respect to said one or more therapeutic compounds, wherein each of said portions is subjected concurrently and separately to said method, and wherein the method includes the use of one or more controls adapted for evaluating said one or more therapeutic compounds.