Like humans, dogs are at risk of spontaneously developing cancer as they age. In fact, cancer is the leading cause of death for dogs (Gardner et al., 2016). Research suggests that dogs may better model cancer than rodents because the disease progression is similar to humans including involvement of the immune system, molecular pathways, variations between animals, tumor resistance to chemotherapy, and metastasis (Gardner et al., 2016). Thus, understanding and developing potential therapeutics for canine cancers has significant implications for fighting cancer in humans as well (Gardner et al., 2016).
The risk of cancer in dogs brings into question how gray wolves (Canis lupus) are able to live in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone (CEZ). In 1986, the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in the Ukrainian SSR exploded spreading radioactivity across the environment. The CEZ is ~1000 square miles of land around the power plant that remains off-limits to humans, with few exceptions, due to the threat of radiation exposure even today. Of course, animals are not very good at following human instructions. So, the area has been repopulated by fungi, plants, wolves, and even horses. Surprisingly, more wolves are found within the CEZ than outside the area.
Dr. Cara Love, a postdoctoral fellow in the laboratory of Dr. Shane Campbell-Staton (Princeton University) teamed up with Dr. Stacey Lance (University of Georgia) to study the effects of long-term radiation exposure on gray wolves. They presented their findings at the annual Society of Integrative and Comparative Biology conference in January. The research team travelled to Chernobyl and attached collars outfitted with radiation dosimeters to wolves and collected blood samples. Data from the collars showed that the wolves were exposed to radiation levels more than six times the legal limit for human exposure (~11.28 millirem daily)! Blood samples revealed that their immune systems shared similarities with people being treated for cancer using radiation therapy. Remarkably, the researchers also found that the animals’ genome showed signs of cancer resistance that the team hopes may lead to clues to help other animals and humans fight cancer.
Sources
HL Gardner, JM Fenger, CA London. Dogs as a model for cancer. Annual Review of Animal Biosciences. 4: 199-222, 2016.
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Categories: Environment, Illnesses and Injuries, Nature's Solutions, Pets
Tags: cancer, canine, dog, health, radiation
Life Lines by Dr. Dolittle 
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