A theoretical analysis of tumour containment.
Cancer is often treated with high doses of chemotherapy, but is that the best path? In a recent paper in Nature Ecology and Evolution, ACE member Rob Noble and co-author Yannick Viossat say No. They combine extensive mathematical analysis and numerical simulations to...
Transmissible cancers and the evolution of sex under the Red Queen hypothesis
The predominance of sexual reproduction in eukaryotes remains paradoxical in evolutionary theory. Of the hypotheses proposed to resolve this paradox, the ‘Red Queen hypothesis’ emphasises the potential of antagonistic interactions to cause fluctuating selection, which...
Cancer progression as a sequence of atavistic reversions: New model shows role of ancient genes in the spread of cancer
In spite of decades of research, cancer remains an enigma. Conventional wisdom holds that cancer is driven by random mutations that create aberrant cells that run amok in the body. In a new paper published this week in the journal BioEssays ACE researchers and...
Why Asian elephants get more cancer and infectious diseases than African elephants
Though cancer in elephants is rare, it does sometimes occur - more often in Asian elephants than in the 2 species of elephants found in Africa. This fascinating study by ACE members published May 2021 in Molecular Biology and Evolution explains why, and makes clear...
Identifying key questions in the ecology and evolution of cancer
This Perspective research paper published in Evolutionary Applications in 2021 provides a roadmap for studying cancer through the lens of evolution and ecology and suggests 84 important questions that should be addressed in coming years. Amongst the 30 plus experts...
Litter size relates to cancer risk; body mass and longevity do not
Why are some species of mammals more vulnerable to cancer than others? It's an important question since the answers may guide us to new understandings of cancer development in humans. In a careful analysis of 42 years of necropsy data from San Diego Zoo and Safari...
Bird size with dinosaur-level cancer defences: can evolutionary lags during miniaturisation explain cancer robustness in birds?
Fascinating preprint by ACE members E. Yagmu Erten, Marc Tollis, Hanna Kokko: https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.10.22.345439v1 An increased appreciation of the ubiquity of cancer risk across the tree of life means we also need to understand the more robust...
When, why and how clonal diversity predicts future tumour growth – New research paper from ACE team member, Rob Noble
First published: 04 July 2020 in Evolutionary Applications https://doi.org/10.1111/eva.13057 Authors: Robert Noble, John T Burley, Cécile Le Sueur, Michael E Hochberg Intratumour heterogeneity holds promise as a prognostic biomarker in multiple cancer types. However,...
Endless Forms Most Beautiful: A Garden Shows That Cancer Is a Part of Life
Published on-line in Leonardo on March 16 2020. Pamela Winfrey, Caspian Robertson, Carlo Maley and Athena Aktipis. Endless Forms Most Beautiful is a crested cactus garden that embodies both an aesthetic and medically transformative approach to cancer. The cacti in...
The Evolution of Human Cancer Gene Duplications across Mammals – Preprint
New study sheds light on many aspects of the evolution of cancer suppression in mammals. Published in bioRxiv (the preprint server for biology) on March 5 2020. Marc Tollis, Aika K. Schneider-Utaka, Carlo C. Maley. Abstract Cancer is caused by genetic alterations that...