Urine-derived bladder cancer organoids (urinoids) as a tool for cancer longitudinal response monitoring and therapy adaptation

BACKGROUND: Bladder cancer is one of the most common cancer types worldwide. Generally, research relies on invasive sampling strategies.

METHODS: Here, we generate bladder cancer organoids directly from urine (urinoids). In this project, we establish 12 urinoid lines from 22 patients with non-muscle and muscle-invasive bladder tumours, with an efficiency of 55%.

RESULTS: The histopathological features of the urinoids accurately resemble those of the original bladder tumours. Genetically, there is a high concordance of single nucleotide polymorphisms (92.56%) and insertions & deletions (91.54%) between urinoids and original tumours from patient 4. Furthermore, these urinoids show sensitivity to bladder cancer drugs, similar to their tissue-derived organoid counterparts. Genetic analysis of longitudinally generated tumoroids and urinoids from one patient receiving systemic immunotherapy, identify alterations that may guide the choice for second-line therapy. Successful treatment adaptation was subsequently demonstrated in the urinoid setting.

CONCLUSION: Therefore, urinoids can advance precision medicine in bladder cancer as a non-invasive platform for tumour pathogenesis, longitudinal drug-response monitoring, and therapy adaptation.