Cancerous tumors believed to be parasitic organisms

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SALT LAKE CITY — In the July 1 issue of the journal "Cell Cycle," Peter Duesberg, a molecular and cell biology professor at the University of California, Berkeley, published a new scientific paper on the subject. He states, "Cancerous tumors are parasitic organisms. Each one is a new species that, like most parasites, depends on its host for food, but otherwise operates independently and often to the detriment of its host."

Scientists have long wondered if cancer tumors were really a type of parasitic infection. The concept that the formation of cancer is similar to the evolution of a new species is hardly new. Various biologists hinted at that possibility it in the late 20th century.

Evolutionary biologist Julian S. Huxley wrote, "Once the neoplastic process has crossed the threshold of autonomy, the resultant tumor can be logically regarded as a new biologic species." He made his observation in 1956 but it never gained much traction in scientific circles.

In recent years, however, the idea has gained traction and scientists are again proposing that there is now proof — or at least good or better reason to believe it is probably true.

Last year, Dr. Mark Vincent of the London Regional Cancer Program and University of Western Ontario successfully argued in the journal "Evolution" that carcinogenesis and the "evolution of cancer cells are speciation events in the strict Darwinian sense."

Duesberg and his UC Berkeley colleagues — postdoctoral fellow Daniele Mandrioli, research associate Amanda McCormack of UC Berkeley and graduate student Joshua M. Nicholson in the Department of Biological Sciences at Virginia Polytechnic Institute — describe their theory that "carcinogenesis — the generation of cancer — is just another form of speciation, the evolution of new species. Cancer is comparable to a bacterial level of complexity, but still autonomous; that is, it doesn’t depend on other cells for survival; it doesn’t follow orders like other cells in the body, and it can grow where, when and how it likes… That’s what species are all about."

Accordingly this new view of cancer, there is great promise as scientists seek new ways to solve the cancer riddle and mystery that has eluded them for so many years already. This newest development in cancer research has the potential of fundamentally changing the way cancer is treated and researched.

The future emphasis may provide new approaches to therapy or new drug targets and result in a demonstrated emphasis on how disrupted chromosomes of newly-evolved cancers are visible in the laboratory. The new viewpoints and theories may make the detection of cancers easier and earlier.

The much-touted pap smear relies on changes in the shapes of cervical cells as an indication of chromosomal problems that could lead to cervical cancer, but those chromosomal changes may be the new speciation.

Duesberg hopes his theories and those of his fellow colleagues will gain a greater consensus and acceptance in the scientific community and lead to new discoveries. Dr. Mark Vincent, whose previous work was published last year, suspects that"cancers are operating right at the edge of survivability, maintaining genomic flexibility while retaining the ability to divide forever. Because they are driven to evolve even faster, (it) might push them over the edge."

Duesberg’s ongoing research is funded by the Abraham J. and Phyllis Katz Foundation, philanthropists Dr. Christian Fiala, Rajeev and Christine Joshi, Robert Leppo and Peter Rozsa of the Taubert Memorial Foundation, other private sources and the Forschungsfonds der Fakultät für Klinische Medizin Mannheim der Universität Heidelberg.

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