Strange Attractor in Immunology of Tumor Growth

Abstract

The time delayed cytotoxic T-lymphocyte response on the tumor growth has been developed on the basis of discrete approximation (2-dimensional map). The growth kinetic has been described by logistic law with growth rate being the bifurcation parameter. Increase in the growth rate results in instability of the tumor state and causes period-doubling bifurcations in the immune+tumor system. For larger values of tumor growth rate a strange attractor has been observed. The model proposed is able to describe the metastable-state production when time series data of the immune state and the number of tumor cells are irregular and unpredictable. This metastatic disease may be caused not by exterior (medical) factors, but interior density dependent ones.