Evaluating the potential for maximized T cell redistribution entropy to improve abscopal responses to radiotherapy

The potential for local radiation therapy to elicit systemic (abscopal) anti-tumor immune responses has been receiving a significant amount of attention over the last decade. We recently developed a mathematical framework designed to simulate the systemic dissemination of activated T cells among multiple metastatic sites. This framework allowed the identification of non-intuitive patterns of T cell redistribution after localized therapy, and offered suggestions as to the optimal site to irradiate in order to increase the magnitude of an immune-mediated abscopal response. Here, we evaluate the potential for such a framework to provide clinical decision making support to radiation oncologists. Several challenges such as efficient segmentation and delineation of multiple tumor sites on PET/CT scans, validation of model prediction performance, and effective clinical trial design remain to be addressed prior to the incorporation of such a tool in the clinical setting.