Abstract
Preclinical animal xenograft tumor models are widely used for modeling the growth and spread of disease in translational cancer research. In particular, orthotopic xenograft models of head and neck cancer, by implanting head and neck cancer cell lines into the tongue of the mouse, have advantages for their ability to mimic local tumor growth and recapitulate the pathways of cervical lymph node metastasis seen in human head and neck cancers. However, these animal models have limitations due to the issues related with using established cell lines, suggesting that it is difficult for these animal models to recapitulate tumor heterogeneity and microenvironment. This review summarizes the advantages and limitations of animal models for head and neck cancers and discusses the future directions of the role of animal models in translational cancer research.
