Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41888798›Full record

ReviewMolecular cancer2026

Beyond the mouse: 3R-guided alternative animal models transforming cancer research.

Tobias Faehling, Tobias Reiff, Björn Schumacher, Richard Arndt, James F Amatruda, Thomas G P Grünewald, Florencia Cidre-Aranaz

Abstract readReview
In one paragraph

Review in Molecular cancer, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Tobias FaehlingHopp Children`s Cancer Center Heidelberg (KiTZ), Heidelberg, Germany.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-5500-4987
Tobias ReiffInstitute of Genetics Heinrich-Heine-University Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf, Germany.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-6610-6148
Björn SchumacherInstitute for Genome Stability in Aging and Disease, University and University Hospital of Cologne, Cologne, Germany.
Richard ArndtHopp Children`s Cancer Center Heidelberg (KiTZ), Heidelberg, Germany.ORCID http://orcid.org/0009-0009-3059-9599
James F AmatrudaCancer and Blood Disease Institute, Division of Hematology-Oncology, Children's Hospital, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
Thomas G P GrünewaldHopp Children`s Cancer Center Heidelberg (KiTZ), Heidelberg, Germany.
Florencia Cidre-AranazHopp Children`s Cancer Center Heidelberg (KiTZ), Heidelberg, Germany. florencia.cidrearanaz@dkfz.de.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-0246-7179

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Comprehensively understanding cancer biology requires complex model systems, typically animal models, to replicate tumor behavior, microenvironment interactions, and cell migration/metastatic processes. Traditionally, genetically engineered and xenograft mouse models have been the cornerstone of cancer research. In recent years, the 3R principle—Replacement, Reduction, and Refinement—has reshaped ethical cancer research by promoting alternative animal models. Here we critically examine in vitro and in silico as well as four 3R-compliant animal models — the chicken chorioallantoic membrane (CAM) model, Danio rerio, Drosophila melanogaster, and Caenorhabditis elegans — and assess their advantages, limitations, and translational relevance for cancer research. Special emphasis is placed on practical considerations to inform optimal decision-making, including reproducibility and model-specific advantages and challenges. This review aims to support researchers in selecting ethical and effective preclinical models to advance cancer research.

Indexed as

Disease Models, AnimalNeoplasmsAnimalsCaenorhabditis elegansDrosophila melanogasterHumansMiceZebrafish3R principleCAMCancer modellingC. elegansDrosophilaZebrafish

Identifiers

PMID41888798
PMCPMC13063561

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.