title: Microfluidics for research and applications in oncology.
abstract: Cancer is currently one of the top non-communicable human diseases, and continual research and developmental efforts are being made to better understand and manage this disease. More recently, with the improved understanding in cancer biology as well as the advancements made in microtechnology and rapid prototyping, microfluidics is increasingly being explored and even validated for use in the detection, diagnosis and treatment of cancer. With inherent advantages such as small sample volume, high sensitivity and fast processing time, microfluidics is well-positioned to serve as a promising platform for applications in oncology. In this review, we look at the recent advances in the use of microfluidics, from basic research such as understanding cancer cell phenotypes as well as metastatic behaviors to applications such as the detection, diagnosis, prognosis and drug screening. We then conclude with a future outlook on this promising technology.
authors.affiliation: Mechanobiology Institute, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117411.
authors.forename: Parthiv Kant
authors.initials: PK
authors.lastname: Chaudhuri
authors.affiliation: BioSystems and Micromechanics (BioSyM) IRG, Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology (SMART) Centre, Singapore 138602 and School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, Australian Centre for NanoMedicine, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia. m.warkiani@unsw.edu.au.
authors.forename: Majid
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ebrahimi Warkiani
authors.affiliation: BioSystems and Micromechanics (BioSyM) IRG, Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology (SMART) Centre, Singapore 138602 and Department of Biomedical Engineering, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117575. ctlim@nus.edu.sg.
authors.forename: Tengyang
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Jing
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Engineering, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117575. ctlim@nus.edu.sg and NUS Graduate School for Integrative Sciences and Engineering, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117456.
authors.lastname: Kenry
authors.affiliation: Mechanobiology Institute, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117411 and BioSystems and Micromechanics (BioSyM) IRG, Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology (SMART) Centre, Singapore 138602.
authors.forename: Chwee Teck
authors.initials: CT
authors.lastname: Lim
mesh_terms: D035843:Biomedical Research / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D046210:Microfluidic Analytical Techniques / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology