In the field of diagnostics, probably the most promising applications of microfluidics are in the field of oncology. As of today, most tests using microfluidics devices are targeting infectious diseases and chronic diseases (diabetes, cardiac conditions, kidney failure, psychiatric disorders), but few tests have been targeting cancer biomarkers as there are still few circulating blood or urinary biomarkers for cancer. This is where liquid biopsy combined with single cell analysis methods will play a major role in the next decade, bringing new tools to extract and analyse circulating cancer cells for diagnosis, prognosis and treatment monitoring. Approximately 40% of men and women will be diagnosed with cancer at some point in their lives [1], hence cancer is a rising concern in every country in the world - liquid biopsy and single cell analysis aim to add a new weapon to the arsenal of oncologists. However, liquid biopsy devices are very challenging to build because of the very precise microstructures required to sort circulating tumour cells (CTC). Indeed, new CTC selection methods are based on cell size and deformability. The challenge is huge, as microfluidic chips must enable rapid detection of one CTC among billions of blood cells. Several innovative designs are used to this end, from high and very thin micropillars (high aspect ratio structures) poised to slightly change larger cells’ trajectory within a microfluidic chamber [2], to inertial microfluidic chambers which trap CTC and allow other cells to flow out of the chamber (requiring very precise geometry, such as Vortex Biosciences’ technology).

In the field of pharmaceutical research, organs-on-chips may change the current inefficient paradigm of the drug development process. An organ-on-a-chip is a combination of microtechnology and biology aimed at reconstituting the physiological and mechanical functions of human organs in the form of microengineered devices lined with living cells. Precisely controlled fluid flows combined with mechanical cues and tissue-tissue interfaces enable dynamic models that are expected to be much more relevant than conventional static cultures or animal models. These current methods are not predictive enough however, with about 90% of drugs validated on these models failing during clinical trials because of toxicity or lack of efficacy [3][4]. Indeed, bringing a new drug to the market takes about 12 years and costs several billion dollars. Organs-on-chips have the potential to address the colossal issues of delay and drug development cost, developing a new tool closer to human physiology.