Copyright © 2002 Hindawi Publishing Corporation. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Abstract

In this paper a mathematical model that describes macrophage infiltration into avascular tumours is presented. The qualitative accuracy of the model is assessed by comparing numerical results with independent experimental data that describe the infiltration of macrophages into two types of spheroids: chemoattractant-producing (hepa-1) and chemoattractant-deficient (or C4) spheroids. A combination of analytical and numerical techniques are used to show how the infiltration pattern depends on the motility mechanisms involved (i.e. random motion and chemotaxis) and to explain the observed differences in macrophage infiltration into the hepa-1 and C4 spheroids. Model predictions are generated to show how the spheroid's size and spatial structure and the ability of its constituent cells influence macrophage infiltration. For example, chemoattractant-producing spheroids are shown to recruit larger numbers of macrophages than chemoattractant-deficient spheroids of the same size and spatial structure. The biological implications of these results are also discussed briefly.