The aim of the METAMATS associate team is to bring together a cancer biology experimental laboratory at the Roswell Park Cancer Institute and the Inria MONC team composed of applied mathematicians. The Ebos laboratory is specialized in the study of anti-cancer therapeutics (in particular, novel biologically targeted therapeutics such as anti-angiogenics and immunotherapies) on the development of metastases and produces unique, hard-to-obtain data sets on this process’ dynamics. The MONC team is specialized in mathematical models in oncology, with a dedicated axis about modeling support and methodological development for analysis of data from preclinical studies. In particular, we put emphasis on proposing, studying and validating mathematical models of metastatic development under the action of various therapeutic modalities. Indeed, metastatic expansion remains the main challenge in the treatment of cancer and integrative studies combining experiments, mathematical models and clinical data have the potential to yield predictive computational tools of help to assist both the design of clinical trials and clinical oncologists in therapeutic decisions such as the control of the toxicity/efficacy balance or the optimal combination of treatment modalities.

METAMATS is led by S. Benzekry, research scientist at Inria and J. ML Ebos, Assistant Professor of Oncology at the Roswell Park Cancer Institute.