Is Cancer Biologically Universal?
Cancer works by making cells split and reproduce at an accelerated rate, slowly and painfully killing the afflicted. Its true weapon lies in its ability to surpass the immunity system.
As far as I can tell, no matter how the cells of an alien work, there is no way to make them immune to this. So I must ask, is the basic premise of cancer universal? How can I design a species whose immunity system is immune to cancer?
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1 answer
Assuming the alien life form is multicellular, it should definitively know cancer. Cancer is basically a defect in the mechanism that controls the cell division. Cell division is absolutely essential for growth and reproduction. Also, the multicellular life will have evolved from single-cellular life, as that is the simpler one. Singe cell organisms divide as long as they have the resources, as that is the key to evolutionary success. Therefore the original program of a cell is to multiply uncontrolled; basically the cancer cell is the original.
The control mechanisms are then "bolted on" to enable multicellular organisms; however, any limitations have to be limited for gametes, or else the organism cannot multiply unlimited; a species that can only generate a limited number of progeny generations will die out. So evolution cannot simply destroy the mechanisms that allow unlimited cell division; it has to make sure that it is limited to be activated only when generating offspring, and then again deactivated in the offspring except when generating the next generation.
So any multicellular life will have cells which in principle can multiply without limit, but which have mechanisms to prevent that in most cells, so that cells only multiply in a controlled way when the organism needs it.
But whenever there's such a mechanism, it can be damaged by environmental influences (ionizing radiation "” that one should be quite universal "”, certain chemicals "” which probably depend on the details of the biology "”, possibly pathogens "” likely organism specific "”, and maybe other causes). And if the control mechanism is damaged in the right way, it should result in uncontrolled growth of cells. That is, cancer.
However note the one condition I've mentioned above: Multicellular. For example, a giant intelligent amoeba would not get cancer, simply because it has no cells that can get out of control. It only has one (giant) cell, that is itself, and cell division is just how that amoeba multiplies. Now of course that raises the question whether a giant intelligent amoeba would be possible, but it was just an example anyway. Any way to make those life forms not built out of individual cells would work.
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