Viral Dynamics and Cancer: Modeling Oncogenic and Oncolytic Viruses (15w5095)

The Casa Matemática Oaxaca (CMO) will host the "Viral Dynamics and Cancer: Modeling Oncogenic and Oncolytic Viruses" workshop from August 2nd to August 7th, 2015.

Viruses and other infectious agents are responsible for about 20% of cancers worldwide. Notable examples of cancer-causing virus are the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV), which causes the large majority of cervical, anal, and genital cancers, the Hepatitis B and C viruses (HBV and HCV) that are responsible for a significant fraction of liver cancers, and the Epstein-Barr Virus (EBV), which causes a variety of lymphomas. Conversely, viruses have also been proposed as therapeutic cancer agents, given their ability to infect and kill specific types of cancer cells. Clinical trials are ongoing. It is therefore important to understand how viral dynamics affect both the onset of cancers, and the response of tumours to anti-cancer therapies.

Our workshop aims to provide a forum for presentation of leading-edge mathematical modeling, focused on the dynamics of viruses as cancer-causing agents (e.g. HPV, HBV, HCV, HTLV-1) but also as cancer-clearing agents (e.g. HSV1716, a herpes simplex virus currently under investigation against a range of cancers including high-grade glioma and hepatocellular carcinoma). Further, we aim to foster interactions between viral dynamics and cancer modelers to motivate collaborations and work on these relevant topics. We plan to bring together experts from a variety of disciplines (epidemiology, virology, oncology, modeling) to cover a wide range of issues related to the interactions between viruses and cancers and to bring a broad perspective to the discussion.

The Casa Matemática Oaxaca (CMO) in Mexico, and the Banff International Research Station for Mathematical Innovation and Discovery (BIRS) in Banff, are collaborative Canada-US-Mexico ventures that provide an environment for creative interaction as well as the exchange of ideas, knowledge, and methods within the Mathematical Sciences, with related disciplines and with industry.



The research station in Banff is supported by Canada's Natural Science and Engineering Research Council (NSERC), the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF), Alberta's Advanced Education and Technology, and Mexico's Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología (CONACYT). The research station in Oaxaca is funded by CONACYT.