Wired Magazine reports that scientists have discovered the true identity of a contagious form of cancer that is killing Tasmanian devils. The population has been devastated by this cancer and researchers were able to trace the source back twenty years to a single animal. It appears that the cancer cells are rouge cells [...]]]>

Wired Magazine reports that scientists have discovered the true identity of a contagious form of cancer that is killing Tasmanian devils. The population has been devastated by this cancer and researchers were able to trace the source back twenty years to a single animal. It appears that the cancer cells are rouge cells from the myelin sheath, a protective layer of cells around nerve fibers. Scientists involved in the project indicated that they will begin trying to develop vaccine for this cancer.

Articles like this are always interesting to me because often what isn’t known about a disease is even more interesting than what is known. We tend to know a lot of small pieces of information that don’t add up to a complete whole. We look for reasons in our DNA, in the environment, in stress responses, in viruses, etc. but the number of questions raised always grows much faster than the numbers of questions answered.

Tasmanian Devil Cancer Culprit Revealed