Cancer immunoediting: A process driven by metabolic competition as a predator-prey-shared resource type model

Area of Science:

• Oncology
• Immunology
• Mathematical Biology

Background:

• Tumors exhibit high glucose consumption via glycolysis for energy.
• Activated immune cells, crucial in cancer, also rely heavily on glycolysis.
• Rapidly proliferating immune cells require resources and cannot function without them.

Purpose of the Study:

• To model the complex interactions between tumors, immune cells, and glucose metabolism.
• To investigate how resource competition influences tumor-immune dynamics.
• To explore the impact of glucose competition on tumor growth and immune cell function.

Main Methods:

• Formulation of a predator-prey-common resource mathematical model.
• Analysis of tumor-immune-glucose interactions.
• Bifurcation analysis of model subsystems.

Main Results:

• Model predicts outcomes ranging from tumor elimination to unrestrained growth.
• Competition for glucose between cancer and immune cells can lead to oscillatory tumor growth.
• Oscillatory regimes are linked to shared glucose resource competition.

Conclusions:

• Competition for glucose between cancer cells and cytotoxic immune cells is a key factor in tumor-immune dynamics.
• This nutrient competition may explain limitations in current immunotherapies.
• Understanding these interactions offers insights into tumor progression and therapeutic strategies.