Optimization in Medicine and Biology

Thanks to recent advancements, optimization is now recognized as a crucial component in research and decision-making across a number of fields. Through optimization, scientists have made tremendous advances in cancer treatment planning, disease control, and drug development, as well as in sequencing DNA, and identifying protein structures.

Optimization in Medicine and Biology provides researchers with a comprehensive, single-source reference that will enable them to apply the very latest optimization techniques to their work. With contributions from pioneering international experts this volume integrates strong foundational theory, good modeling techniques, and efficient and robust algorithms with relevant applications

Divided into two sections, the first begins with mathematical programming techniques for medical decision making processes and demonstrates their application to optimizing pediatric vaccine formularies, kidney paired donation, and the cost-effectiveness of HIV programs. It also presents recent advances in cancer treatment planning models and solution algorithms, including three-dimensional conventional conformal radiation therapy (3DCRT), intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT), tomotherapy, and proton therapy.

Part two focuses on optimization in biology and discusses computational algorithms for genomic analysis; probe design and selection, properties of probes, and various algorithms and software packages to aid in probe selection and design. Subsequent chapters introduce a new dihedral angle measure for protein secondary prediction, and an optimization approach for tumor virotherapy with recombinant measles viruses. The editors include a short tutorial appendix on Integer Programming (IP).

Highlighting the most recent advances in optimization techniques for solving complex problems in medical research, this book facilitates strong collaborative environments among optimization researchers and medical professionals for future medical research.