Elephants may be able to help in the fight against cancer, as they have a highly effective inner defense system that prevents tumors from forming.
According to BBC News, a national team of U.S. researchers are aiming to craft new ways to battle cancer by studying how other animals combat it naturally. Elephants, for example, do an exceptional job preventing cancer, especially given their size.
The researchers published their work in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
"Nature has already figured out how to prevent cancer. It's up to us to learn how different animals tackle the problem so we can adapt those strategies to prevent cancer in people," study co-senior author Joshua Schiffman, a pediatric oncologist at Huntsman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah School of Medicine, and Primary Children's Hospital, said in a press release.
Cancer can be so hard to prevent because studies have shown that any cell in a being's body can become cancerous. With so many cells in their bodies, elephants have a relatively low rate of affected animals.
"In terms of adaptive mechanisms against cancer we have the same as a chimp, but we get a lot more cancer than a chimp," Mel Greaves, from the Institute of Cancer Research in London, told BBC News. "I think the answer is humans are completely unique as a species in having very rapid social evolution in a short period of time."
But the researchers emphasized the focus should be on limiting harmful activities unique to humans that cause increased rates of cancer, like smoking.
"Participating in the research is not only amazing but a win-win for humans and elephants," Eric Peterson, elephant manager at Utah's Hogle Zoo, said in the release. "If elephants can hold the key to unlocking some of the mysteries of cancer, then we will see an increased awareness of the plight of elephants worldwide. What a fantastic benefit: elephants and humans living longer, better lives."
