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Cancer Resistant Mouse Provides Possible Cure

Evoluder writes to tell us that scientists at Wake Forest University have found a "cancer resistant mouse" and bred it to make a small army of cancer resistant mice. When transplanting blood from one of these mice to a normal non-resistant mouse they are able to provide "lifetime cancer protection". From the article: "The cancer-resistant mice all stem from a single mouse discovered in 1999. "The cancer resistance trait so far has been passed to more than 2,000 descendants in 14 generations," said Cui, associate professor of pathology. It also has been bred into three additional mouse strains. About 40 percent of each generation inherits the protection from cancer."

41 of 364 comments (clear)

  1. Cancer resistant... by Chabil+Ha' · · Score: 5, Funny

    but mortally susceptible to the common cold.

    --
    We're all hypocrites. We all have hidden parts, it's the contrast between them that make us more a hypocrite than others
    1. Re:Cancer resistant... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

      They need to stop this before the mice become resistant to poison and mouse traps.. maybe they'll even become resistant to being hit with a hammer and then what. Huh?

      It hits the fan, thats what!

    2. Re:Cancer resistant... by indifferent+children · · Score: 4, Funny

      Some damned fool went and invented a better mousetrap, so our scientists had to invent a better mouse.

      --
      Censorship is telling a man he can't have a steak just because a baby can't chew it. --Mark Twain
  2. I for one... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Funny

    ...welcome our cancer resistant mice overlords

    1. Re:I for one... by From+A+Far+Away+Land · · Score: 4, Funny

      The old warfrin poison trick still works, don't worry. Plus we could just breed an army of cancer resistant snakes to take care of the mice.
      Oh...

    2. Re:I for one... by soxos · · Score: 5, Funny

      > The old warfrin poison trick still works, don't worry. Plus we could just breed
      > an army of cancer resistant snakes to take care of the mice.
      > Oh...

      must... resist... can't...

      cancer-resistant mongooses for the snakes
      cancer-resistant gorillas to rid us of the mongooses
      cancer-resistant tigers to attack the gorillas
      cancer-resistant elephants to take care of the tigers
      and cancer-resistant mice to scare the elephants

      lather, rinse, repeat

  3. I for one... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    will skip the line you expected here and get right to the point: INVINCIBLE MICE ARMY?!?

  4. Queue the theme music.... by Ingolfke · · Score: 1, Funny

    Cancer Mouse... duh duh dah!

  5. Nice, but... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    Will this cure cancer in rats? Because, EVERYTHING causes cancer in rats!

  6. Delicious by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    I'll take a carton of cigarettes and a shot of mouse blood.

  7. Re:Blood type issues? by Ingolfke · · Score: 4, Funny

    I don't have a specific answer to your question, but I do know that it all tastes good to me.

  8. Lucky perverts by solevita · · Score: 2, Funny

    There's hundred of guys on the internet that will now never get cancer of the ass. So I'm told...

  9. Re:*squeak* *squeak* by Spy+der+Mann · · Score: 1, Funny

    The Brain: I told you, Pinky! My genetic manipulation machine WORKED!
    Pinky: Yes, Brain, but I'm tired of the needles... zort! poit!

  10. Send in the mice! by digitaldc · · Score: 1, Funny

    Cool, now all we have to do is train these mice to go in and shut down the main reactor and we will all be saved, with no bad side effects or sacrificial Vulcans!

    --
    He who knows best knows how little he knows. - Thomas Jefferson
  11. Re:Wireless? by Shadow+Wrought · · Score: 4, Funny

    It's even worse. Apparantly the cancer resistant gene was found on the 3rd button. Mac users are hosed.

    --
    If brevity is the soul of wit, then how does one explain Twitter?
  12. Cylon? by tokki · · Score: 3, Funny

    So the mouse is a cylon?

    I mean, a'doy. Dr Baltar already figured this out. It cured President Rosylin's cancer, after all.

  13. Re:Cause of the cancer resistance by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    Thats a brilliant idea.

    Why dont you email them and suggest it?

    Reading between the lines of your analysis, I think youre saying there could be a real future application for it.

    Like I dunno...curing cancer maybe?

  14. Take heed, Slashdotters! by Guppy06 · · Score: 5, Funny

    "The cancer resistance trait so far has been passed to more than 2,000 descendants in 14 generations"

    If you cure cancer, you get laid.

  15. Re:Beware. by Retric · · Score: 5, Funny

    "can I get a transplant donor soul?"

    Yes.

    --Prince of Lies.

  16. I for one... by bgarcia · · Score: 1, Funny

    I for one welcome our new Immortal Mice Overlords...

    --
    I'm a leaf on the wind. Watch how I soar.
  17. Lifetime cancer protection by markov_chain · · Score: 4, Funny

    they are able to provide "lifetime cancer protection"

    I see, so the protection lasts right until they die... from cancer. I think Aleve can do this just as well :)

    --
    Tsunami -- You can't bring a good wave down!
  18. I, for one by sprag · · Score: 1, Funny

    welcome our cancer-resistant rodent overlords.

  19. All that money! by ashtophoenix · · Score: 2, Funny

    All that money spent in research, and all we come up is with better mice! Plus I don't think they care too much about having cancer.

    --
    Life is about being a Phoenix!
  20. In other news... by Paladine97 · · Score: 3, Funny

    Richard Gere is all smiles and breathing a sigh of relief.

    1. Re:In other news... by mapmaker · · Score: 3, Funny

      So that's the secret method of transferring the immunity to humans! I think I'll take the cancer...

  21. Cliche among oncologists by Beryllium+Sphere(tm) · · Score: 4, Funny

    They say that if you turn up with cancer you'd be well advised to be a mouse, since the treatments work so much better.

  22. Re:Beware. by Maxo-Texas · · Score: 2, Funny

    That's kinda cool.

    So then we could transplant that gene and
    1) Give plants souls
    2) Give animals souls
    3) Give bacteria souls

    We already have a clearly soulless population of humans (CEO's and Lawyers) so we could isolate the difference between their genes and the rest of the populace to isolate this cancer-causing soul making gene.

    --
    She was like chocolate when she drank... semi-sweet at first and then increasingly bitter.
  23. Re:Beware. by Anonymous+Meoward · · Score: 4, Funny

    This cancer gene could be the one that also gives humans a soul.

    Hmm, lessee.. no cancer in my lifetime in exchange for something I've never had any use for. Man, hard choice.

    Ch-ching!

    Next week, maybe I'll get to trade group sex for herpes.

    --
    --- The American Way of Life is not a birthright. Hell, it's not even sustainable.
  24. Not quite a reliable claim by NevarMore · · Score: 2, Funny

    "... able to provide "lifetime cancer protection"."

    The article fails to mention that 'lifetime' can be greatly affected by the neighboring reptile obesity study.

  25. Are they good on toast? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    They'll be delivered as a suppository, though they'll make a bit of a squeaking sound as they are inserted in your ass.

  26. Re:Beware. by ch-chuck · · Score: 3, Funny

    C'mon, man - everybody knows whities ain't got the soul gene.

    --
    try { do() || do_not(); } catch (JediException err) { yoda(err); }
  27. Re:Reference by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    Do you try to pronounce this PNAS as a word or always have to spell it out? In conversation, I mean.

  28. Re:Good Idea/Bad Idea by LWATCDR · · Score: 2, Funny

    A better question is could this cause autoimmune problems? If it makes the immune system more sensitive could it increase you chances at Lupus, MS, and or arthritis?
    That is why I really hate biology. It is too complex. We need to to do a complete redesign! We need more isolation of functions and batter fault tolerance.
    Sounds like a good open source project.

    --
    See my blog http://ilovecookes.blogspot.com/ for light hearted technical information.
  29. In Related News... by carrier+lost · · Score: 2, Funny

    ...mice begin smoking filterless cigarettes with wild abandon.

    MjM

  30. Great, but... by VinB · · Score: 2, Funny

    unfortunately, it has been found that it is a special chemical in the tail that provides the resistance.

    In other news, Scientist have teamed up with fashion designer Ralph Loren to test market special jeans and skirts with button-fly tail holes in the back.

  31. Dosage by JustNiz · · Score: 1, Funny

    >> Cancer Resistant Mouse Provides Possible Cure

    Just dissolve one under your tongue every 8 hours...

  32. Problem by soft_guy · · Score: 5, Funny

    Your loop is leaking scared elephants.

    --
    Avoid Missing Ball for High Score
    1. Re:Problem by Walt+Dismal · · Score: 4, Funny

      It's the dreaded Elephant Buffer Overflow, the curse of IE users.

    2. Re:Problem by OldManAndTheC++ · · Score: 3, Funny

      Heh. And all that time I thought IE was shitting all over my system ... turns out it was elephants.

      --
      Soylent Green is peoplicious!
  33. A cancer-resistant mouse! by NereusRen · · Score: 4, Funny

    Fantastic! I am very excited about this development. Will there be an ergonomic model released to prevent me from getting RSI, too? Perhaps a cancer-resistant trackball is in order.

    ... oh. Nevermind.

  34. My question is... by Billosaur · · Score: 2, Funny

    ...how do they get all those mice to smoke tiny cigarettes?

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