Stochastic Cancer Growth in the Basal Stem Cell Layer: A Two-Dimensional Spatial Competition Model

Abstract

A new two-dimensional model of how cancer develops and spreads in the basal stratum of the skin was developed. Through modeling of stochastic variation of cell division and interactions between adjacent cells, mutations can be shown to spread through a cell population or die off in a few generations of cell division. Phase changes were quantified through development of a computer algorithm to model this behavior. Understanding cancer development through interactions between cells rather than on a purely molecular level can enrich our understanding of how cancer develops and how biological systems interact.