Cooperative Animals & Cancer Risk: New Research

Cancer is not exclusive to humans. Many wild animals also develop tumors, but some species seem to be particularly “cancer-resistant.” Recently, the University of Zurich found that a “cooperative lifestyle” in animals is associated with a lower risk of cancer. The paper was recently published in the journal Science Advances, explaining from an evolutionary perspective why some animals have lower rates of cancer.

From fighting alone to working together as a group

Mammals such as meerkats, naked mole rats, and lions live in groups, raising young together, sharing resources, and fighting off predators together. Research shows that such “cooperative” animals have a lower incidence of cancer; conversely, species that live alone or are highly competitive have a higher risk of cancer.

Cooperative behavior may have multiple benefits: group living can share external risks and resource pressures, reduce individual physiological load, and reduce the chance of cell damage and mutation; secondly, cooperative species will have “non-reproductive members”. This “reducing reproductive pressure” strategy may also reduce the risk of cell cancer. The evolution of these animal social behaviors not only affects the survival of the group, but also reduces the risk of canceration of individual cells.

Evolving “Anti-Cancer Strategies”

The team integrated global mammalian cancer data and used mathematical models to simulate the evolutionary relationship between social behavior and cancer mortality risk. The results show that species with high competition and frequent reproduction have a higher risk of cancer; species with stable mutual assistance have significantly lower cancer incidence rates.

This study raises a unique point: Many cooperative animals often require older individuals to maintain their functions, so evolution will tend to eliminate genes that cause “cancer risk.” Long-term cooperative living may lead to stronger anti-cancer mechanisms, giving the group ecological and physiological advantages.

Inspiration for mankind

The team emphasized that “more cooperation among humans does not equal cancer prevention.” Human cancer risk is affected by multiple factors such as diet, environmental pollution, genetic mutations, medical treatment, etc., and is much more complex than that of wild animals. More importantly, “cooperation” refers to social structures that have evolved over time, rather than occasional gatherings of friends or regular social events. However, stable interpersonal support and low chronic stress may indeed help maintain immune and metabolic stability, and indirectly reduce the risk of disease to some extent.

This research opens up a new direction in “evolutionary medicine”. In the future, scholars could consider expanding to more species to understand how different social structures affect cancer risk; they could also explore molecular mechanisms, such as tumor suppressor genes, immune surveillance, DNA repair, or antioxidant systems, whether they are more active in cooperative societies. For humans, this reminds us that while emphasizing competition and efficiency, we should not ignore the importance of mutual assistance and stable relationships. Evolution has given us clues that cooperation may be a natural way to promote health and longevity.

(First image source: Pixabay)