A stochastic individual-based model for immunotherapy of cancer

I will present an individual-based model of adaptive dynamics which is motivated by the modelling of immunotherapy for malignant tumors.
On the one hand, we show that the interplay of genetic mutations and phenotypic switches on different timescales as well as the occurrence of metastability phenomena raise new mathematical challenges. On the other hand, we argue why understanding purely stochastic events (which cannot be obtained with deterministic systems) may help to understand the resistance of tumors to various therapeutic approaches and may have non-trivial consequences on tumor treatment protocols.  We demonstrate this through numerical simulations.
Joint work with Martina Baar, Hannah Mayer, Michael Hölzel, Meri Rogava, Thomas Tüting, and Anton Bovier. University of Bonn and University Hospital of Bonn.