Share

Can evolutionary biology explain why we get cancer?

Over 500 billion cells in our bodies will be replaced daily, yet natural selection has enabled us to develop defences against the cellular mutations which could cause cancer. It is this relationship between evolution and the body's fight against cancer which is explored in a new special issue of the Open Access journal Evolutionary Applications.

"Cancer is far from a single well-defined disease which we can identify and eradicate," said Dr Athena Aktipis, Director, Human and Social Evolution, Center for Evolution and Cancer at the University of California, San Francisco. "It is highly diverse and evolutionary theory allows us to consider cancer as a highly complex and evolving ecosystem. This approach can improve the understanding, treatment and prevention of a number of different cancer types."

So why do we get cancer?

By applying the principles of evolutionary biology papers in the special issue ask: Why do we get cancer, despite the body's powerful cancer suppression mechanisms? How do evolutionary principles like natural selection, mutation, and genetic drift, work in a cancer ecosystem? How can we use evolutionary theory to minimise the rate of cancers worldwide?

"Nowhere is the diversity of cancer better revealed than the many reasons why we remain vulnerable to it," said Dr Aktipis. "Evolutionary medicine allows us to see explanations for traits that leave organisms vulnerable to disease."

These evolutionary explanations include the role of environmental factors, such as the relationship between tobacco availability and lung cancer; co-evolution with fast evolving pathogens; constraints on what selection can do; trade-offs, such as the capacity for tissue repair vs. risk of cancer; reproductive success at the expense of health; defences with costs as well as benefits, such as inflammation.

"An evolutionary approach can unite and explain the many avenues of cancer research by allowing us to see cancer as an ecosystem," concluded Dr Aktipis. "Just as a forest depends on the individual characteristics of trees as well as the interactions of each tree with its environment; similarly tumours can be comprised of genetically distinct cells, which depend on both cell-to-cell interactions within the tumour, as well as on the interactions of tumour itself with the body."

(EurekAlert, January 2013)

Read more:

Cancer studies often downplay side effects

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE