Natalia Komarova develops mathematical models to study initiation and
development of cancer, viewed as somatic evolution in populations of
cells. She has investigated the following questions important for
understanding of cancer: What is the role of genetic instability in
cancer progression?  What are cellular origins of cancer? What is the
role of stem cells in carcinogenesis?  How does neovascularization
proceed in tumors? How can we fight resistance to drug therapies?
Natalia's main interest is to formulate important questions of cancer
biology in the language of mathematics, and use experimental data to
validate the mathematical models.