There is an idea in biology that larger animals should be much more prone to cancer since they have more cells. But it doesn’t work out that way.
Arizona State University researchers took 10 years gathering data to study cancer prevalence among hundreds of different species.
That idea that larger animals don’t get cancer as often as expected is called Peto’s Paradox and was the motivation for the study.
Previously there had been a lack of evidence to really examine that.
This paper analyzed 16,000 animal autopsies, called necropsies, of 292 species. Contrary to the paradox, it found larger animals actually did die from cancer more often than smaller animals, but only slightly.
ASU professor Carlo Maley says the length of time an animal gestates during pregnancy could lead to some answers.
“If it’s just about pregnancy you should see females getting cancer less often than the males. If it's about the development of the embryo and the fetus into a baby, then both males and females should have low cancer. So we're in the process of testing that from our data.” he said.
Maley says the findings could help lead to better cancer treatments for humans.
"If you understand the mechanism by which the animal is protecting itself from cancer, we might be able to replicate that either by changing the exposures in humans or or drugs that mimic that effect," he said.
The study was published in the journal Cancer Discovery.
-
A new study by Phoenix’s Barrow Neurological Institute is leading to changes in how migraine patients are treated in emergency rooms across the U.S. -
New research shows that mountain regions around the world are warming faster than the lowlands below them. Scientists say that could have big consequences for the Mountain West, where communities rely on snow and ice for their water supply. -
The Tonto National Forest has temporarily closed the lower Salt River area to most horses and pack animals after an equine virus was detected. The closure could last through March. -
Researchers from the University of Arizona have uncovered how a protein complex, known for regulating cell growth and adjusting metabolism, functions in a more complex manner. -
Having chronic pain can qualify you for Arizona’s medical marijuana program. But research led by UCLA says there’s a lack of evidence that cannabis treats chronic pain and most other conditions for which it may be prescribed.
