2.13. Animal Model of Cancer Cachexia

Male BALB/c mice (10 weeks old) were randomly assigned to the following treatment groups: (1) 1 × 10⁶ CT26 colon cancer cells inoculated subcutaneously (SC) in the right flank and (2) an equal volume of saline inoculated SC in the right flank. Tumor growth was monitored twice weekly, and tumor volume was measured using a caliper and calculated using the following formula: V (volume) = (longitudinal × transverse²)/2. Ten days after tumor injection, LiCl was administered daily at a specific concentration for 21 days. Grip strength was measured using a BIO-GS3 strength meter (Bioseb, France). Each mouse was tested four times at 30 min intervals, and the maximum value force was used to represent the muscle force. Twenty-eight days after CT26 cell or saline injection, the mice were anesthetized and sacrificed for further analysis.