Print Email Facebook Twitter The Contribution of Evolutionary Game Theory to Understanding and Treating Cancer Title The Contribution of Evolutionary Game Theory to Understanding and Treating Cancer Author Wölfl, Benjamin (University of Vienna) te Rietmole, Hedy (University Medical Center Utrecht) Salvioli, M. (TU Delft Transport and Logistics; Università di Trento; Universiteit Maastricht) Kaznatcheev, Artem (University of Pennsylvania; University of Oxford) Thuijsman, Frank (Universiteit Maastricht) Brown, Joel S. (Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute; University of Illinois at Chicago) Burgering, Boudewijn (University Medical Center Utrecht; The Oncode Institute) Staňková, K. (TU Delft Transport and Logistics; TU Delft Mathematical Physics; Universiteit Maastricht) Date 2021 Abstract Evolutionary game theory mathematically conceptualizes and analyzes biological interactions where one’s fitness not only depends on one’s own traits, but also on the traits of others. Typically, the individuals are not overtly rational and do not select, but rather inherit their traits. Cancer can be framed as such an evolutionary game, as it is composed of cells of heterogeneous types undergoing frequency-dependent selection. In this article, we first summarize existing works where evolutionary game theory has been employed in modeling cancer and improving its treatment. Some of these game-theoretic models suggest how one could anticipate and steer cancer’s eco-evolutionary dynamics into states more desirable for the patient via evolutionary therapies. Such therapies offer great promise for increasing patient survival and decreasing drug toxicity, as demonstrated by some recent studies and clinical trials. We discuss clinical relevance of the existing game-theoretic models of cancer and its treatment, and opportunities for future applications. Moreover, we discuss the developments in cancer biology that are needed to better utilize the full potential of game-theoretic models. Ultimately, we demonstrate that viewing tumors with evolutionary game theory has medically useful implications that can inform and create a lockstep between empirical findings and mathematical modeling. We suggest that cancer progression is an evolutionary competition between different cell types and therefore needs to be viewed as an evolutionary game. Subject Competitive releaseEco-evolutionary dynamicsEvolutionary game theoryGeneticsResistanceStackelberg evolutionary games To reference this document use: http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:25158ae9-e25e-4d8a-82e4-df265836ab91 DOI https://doi.org/10.1007/s13235-021-00397-w ISSN 2153-0785 Source Dynamic Games and Applications, 12 (2), 313-342 Part of collection Institutional Repository Document type review Rights © 2021 Benjamin Wölfl, Hedy te Rietmole, M. Salvioli, Artem Kaznatcheev, Frank Thuijsman, Joel S. Brown, Boudewijn Burgering, K. Staňková Files PDF W_lfl2021_Article_TheCont ... onaryG.pdf 1.05 MB Close viewer /islandora/object/uuid:25158ae9-e25e-4d8a-82e4-df265836ab91/datastream/OBJ/view