The Effect of Radiotherapy on Diffuse Low-Grade Gliomas Evolution: Confronting Theory with Clinical Data.

Area of Science:

• Oncology
• Mathematical Biology
• Medical Physics

Background:

• Diffuse low-grade gliomas (DLGGs) are characterized by slow growth and inevitable recurrence post-treatment.
• Existing models for DLGG evolution have limitations in accurately capturing tumor dynamics.
• Understanding DLGG progression is crucial for developing effective therapeutic strategies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To propose a novel, biologically motivated mathematical model for DLGG radius evolution.
• To validate the model against clinical data from 43 patients.
• To estimate the tumor birth age and analyze temporal evolution patterns.

Main Methods:

• Development of a simplified yet biologically relevant mathematical model for tumor radius change.
• Application of a stochastic optimization technique for model fitting to time-series clinical data.
• Utilizing profile likelihood for confidence interval estimation of tumor birth age.

Main Results:

• The novel model demonstrated excellent fit to clinical data for all 43 patient records.
• The model provides insights into tumor evolution from the initial glioma cell.
• Analysis suggests a potential origin of low-grade gliomas in the late teenage years.
• An analytical expression for tumor radius evolution explains observed data correlations.

Conclusions:

• The proposed model offers a significant improvement for understanding DLGG growth dynamics.
• The findings support the hypothesis that low-grade gliomas may originate during adolescence.
• This work provides a foundation for further research into DLGG pathogenesis and early detection.