Multi-Drug Scheduling for Chemotherapy Using Fractional Order Internal Model Controller

Abstract

Chemotherapy is a widely used cancer treatment method globally. However, cancer cells can develop resistance towards single-drug-based chemotherapy if it is infused for extended periods, resulting in treatment failure in many cases. To address this issue, oncologists have progressed towards using multi-drug chemotherapy (MDC). This method considers different drug concentrations for cancer treatment, but choosing incorrect drug concentrations can adversely affect the patient’s body. Therefore, it is crucial to recognize the trade-off between drug concentrations and their adverse effects. To address this issue, a closed-loop multi-drug scheduling based on Fractional Order Internal-Model-Control Proportional Integral (IMC-FOPI) Control is proposed. The proposed scheme combines the benefits of fractional PI and internal model controllers. Additionally, the parameters of IMC-FOPI are optimally tuned using a random walk-based Moth-flame optimization. The performance of the proposed controller is compared with PI and Two degrees of freedom PI (2PI) controllers for drug concentration control at the tumor site. The results reveal that the proposed control scheme improves the settling time by 43% and 21% for VX, 54% and 48 % for VY, and 48% and 40% for VZ, respectively, compared to PI and 2PI. Therefore, it can be concluded that the proposed control scheme is more efficient in scheduling multi-drug than conventional controllers.