The effect of a psychological scare on the dynamics of the tumor-immune interaction with optimal control strategy

Abstract

Contracting cancer typically induces a state of terror among the individuals who are affected. Exploring how chemotherapy and anxiety work together to affect the speed at which cancer cells multiply and the immune system’s response model is necessary to come up with ways to stop the spread of cancer. This paper proposes a mathematical model to investigate the impact of psychological scare and chemotherapy on the interaction of cancer and immunity. The proposed model is accurately described. The focus of the model’s dynamic analysis is to identify the potential equilibrium locations. According to the analysis, it is possible to establish three equilibrium positions. The stability analysis reveals that all equilibrium points consistently exhibit stability under the defined conditions. The bifurcations occurring at the equilibrium sites are derived. Specifically, we obtained transcritical, pitchfork, and saddle-node bifurcation. Numerical simulations are employed to validate the theoretical study and ascertain the minimum therapy dosage necessary for eradicating cancer in the presence of psychological distress, thereby mitigating harm to patients. Fear could be a significant contributor to the spread of tumors and weakness of immune functionality.