Wednesday, November 12th, 2014
3:30pm - 4:30pm, in Science 2-066

Ivana Bozic

Harvard University

Evolutionary dynamics of resistance to cancer therapy

Abstract: Metastatic dissemination to surgically inaccessible sites is the major cause of death in cancer patients. Targeted therapies, often initially effective against metastatic disease, invariably fail due to resistance. Mathematical modeling can be used to illuminate the evolutionary dynamics of resistance to anti-cancer treatment and provide important information for the design of treatments that aim to control resistance. We discuss recent approaches, which combine mathematical modeling of resistance together with clinical data, and point to the reasons behind treatment failure in patients with metastatic disease.