Cancer: Shift of the paradigm

SummaryCancer is usually considered to be a by-product of design limitations of a multicellular organism and its intrinsic fallibility. However, recent data prompt a revision of some established notions about carcinogenesis and form a new paradigm of carcinogenesis as a highly conserved biological phenomenon – a programmed death of an organism. This altruistic program, which is unleashed when mutagenesis surpasses a certain critical threshold, gives a population the important benefit acting as a guardian of the gene pool against the spread of certain mutant genes. A growing body of evidence supports this point of view: (i) epigenetic changes leading to cancer arise early, simultaneously in many cells and look like deterministic regulation; (ii) concept of cancer stem cell suggests a view of carcinogenesis not as vague transformation but as well known differentiation; (iii) tumor/host relations usually perceived as antagonistic are, in reality, synergistic; (iv) death of an individual from cancer is predetermined and results apparently from a specific activity (killer function) of cancer cell and (v) evolutionary conservation indicates that cancer comes with a general advantage that explains its evolutionary success. A holistic approach to carcinogenesis suggests new avenues of research and new therapeutic strategy.