A success story of mathematical modelling

Primary mediastinal B-cell lymphoma (PMBL) and classical Hodgkin lymphoma (cHL) often involve abnormal JAK/STAT signalling, a pathway controlling cell growth and immune responses. To study this, researchers collected detailed molecular data from two representative cell lines—MedB-1 (PMBL) and L1236 (cHL)—and built two mathematical models to capture how the pathway behaves in each (Fig 2; Raia et al, 2011).

These models helped identify key differences between the two cancers and predicted potential intervention points. In total, six candidate targets were suggested for L1236 and three for MedB-1. One prediction—blocking STAT5 activation—was confirmed experimentally, showing how modelling can help pinpoint effective treatment strategies.