Despite many advances in cancer treatment, cancer still remains a major global health problem owing to its high rate of recurrence, the tendency to metastasize, and the development of drug resistance. In addition to animal models, cancer researchers can employ in vitro tumor models to mimic in vivo tumor microenvironment with the purpose of discovering new therapeutic approaches. In order to engineer a realistic tumor microenvironment that can recapitulate not only cancer progression but also angiogenesis and metastasis, many complex interacting factors must be taken into account. Strategies based on 3D bioprinting are now being investigated, which could simulate the tumor microenvironment by bioprinting living human cells. These approaches allow the accurate placement of the normal cancer cells and bioactive macromolecules to monitor cancer progression, facilitate drug screening, and provide to design new generations of anticancer therapies. The present review summarizes progress in the area of 3D bioprinting utility for mimicking the tumor microenvironment, and studying the physicochemical/biological factors for new and improved therapeutic and diagnostic applications.

尽管癌症治疗取得了许多进展，但由于其高复发率、转移倾向和耐药性的发展，癌症仍然是一个主要的全球健康问题。除了动物模型，癌症研究人员还可以利用体外肿瘤模型来模拟体内肿瘤微环境，以发现新的治疗方法。为了设计一个现实的肿瘤微环境，不仅可以概括癌症进展，还可以概括血管生成和转移，必须考虑许多复杂的相互作用因素。目前正在研究基于 3D 生物打印的策略，该策略可以通过生物打印活的人体细胞来模拟肿瘤微环境。这些方法允许准确放置正常癌细胞和生物活性大分子，以监测癌症进展，促进药物筛选，并提供设计新一代抗癌疗法。本综述总结了用于模拟肿瘤微环境的 3D 生物打印实用程序领域的进展，以及研究用于新的和改进的治疗和诊断应用的物理化学/生物因素。