Transmissible Cancers in an Evolutionary Perspective
Antoine M. Dujon, Robert A. Gatenby, Georgina Bramwell, Nick MacDonald, Erin Dohrmann, Nynke Raven, Aaron G. Schultz, Rodrigo Hamede, Anne‐Lise Gérard, Mathieu Giraudeau, Frédéric Thomas, Beáta Újvári
Abstract
Inter-individual transmission of cancer cells represents an intriguing and unexplored host-pathogen system, with significant ecological and evolutionary ramifications. The pathogen consists of clonal malignant cell lines that spread horizontally as allografts and/or xenografts. Although only nine transmissible cancer lineages in eight host species from both terrestrial and marine environments have been investigated, they exhibit evolutionary dynamics that may provide novel insights into tumor-host interactions particularly in the formation of metastases. Here we present an overview of known transmissible cancers, discuss the necessary and sufficient conditions for cancer transmission, and provide a comprehensive review on the evolutionary dynamics between transmissible cancers and their hosts.