Table 3.

Comparison of advantages and disadvantages of common cancer models

	Cell model			Animal model			Organoid model
	Primary cells	Cell lines		Cell-derived xenograft	Patient-derived xenograft
Methods	Cells isolated directly from animal or human tissue.	Cells that converge in function, metabolism, and morphology. Infinite proliferation and immortalization.		The tumour cells cultured in vitro were inoculated subcutaneously into immunodeficient mice.	Patient-derived tumour tissue was implanted into immunodeficient mice.		Derived from embryonic stem cells or induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). Derived from tumour tissue of patients.
Advantages	Similar characteristics to animal or human cells.	Less interference factors, easy synchronization, easier control of experimental conditions and easy gene manipulation.		The effect on the host is similar. Tumour morphology, growth rate, drug sensitivity, and death time of animals were very similar.	Preserve the microenvironment of parental tumour growth. High tumour similarity. Preserve tumour heterogeneity.		Simulate the complexity of tumour microenvironments. High plasticity. The cultivation time is short. There are no ethical issues.
Disadvantages	Poor uniformity. The proliferative ability is low and cannot be passaged. The transfection efficiency is low.	Partial or complete loss of the characteristics of primary cells. Mutations may occur during long-term passage.		The growth rate is fast, the proliferation ratio is high, and the volume doubling time is short, which is significantly different from human tumours.	The in vivo microenvironment cannot be fully simulated. Model building takes a long time. The success rate of model building is low.		Lack of innate immune cells. No endocrine and neural regulation. The technology is not yet mature.