transmissible cancer catfish

The quick read

What's driving the attention

Scientists have discovered a transmissible cancer spreading among catfish in Quebec, which behaves more like a parasite than a traditional tumor.

Researchers in Canada have identified a strange form of transmissible cancer spreading among catfish populations, especially in Quebec. Unlike typical cancers that remain within one organism, this transmissible cancer behaves similarly to a parasite, passing from one catfish to another. This discovery has raised concerns about its ecological impact and is drawing scientific attention to unusual mechanisms of disease transmission in aquatic species.