In the fractionated radiation-induced oral mucositis model in hamsters, disease is induced with daily smaller doses of radiation (x-ray) directed at the cheek pouch while the remainder of the animal’s body is shielded. The fractionated model provides increased translatability as patients often undergo several weeks of daily radiation treatment. As with the acute model, primary endpoints include clinical mucositis scoring using a validated scale and analysis of the frequency and duration of ulceration, mimicking the key endpoints in cancer patients. Radio-sensitizing chemotherapy can also be combined with radiation treatment.

• Advantages: consistent disease incidence, good for screening potential drug candidates, increased clinical relevance with repeated radiation treatments, easy to dose topical therapies.
• Disadvantages: longer study duration, more costly.

• Golden Syrian Hamster

• Percent weight change
• Survival
• Clinical oral mucositis evaluation using validated scoring scale
• Analyses of frequency and duration of ulceration
• Terminal histopathology and/or IHC analyses

• Local and systemic biomarker analysis
• Custom assays