Question

Why are primarily childhood cancers like Leukemia and Lymphoma not as clearly connected to the Atavistic Hypothesis?

A) The Atavistic Hypothesis explains cancer as a failure to check cell proliferation.

B) The Atavistic Hypothesis doesn't apply to cancers that are unrelated to organ or tissue development.

C) There is intense selection for high rates of recombination and point mutations in certain cells in the immune system (beneficial to fighting off pathogens), despite the possibility of leukemia and lymphoma.

Answer 1

According to the Atavistic Hypothesis, cancers develop because of onset of ancestral traits and down regulation of expression of newly derived traits. However, due to recombination and selection process, primarily childhood cancers like Leukemia and Lymphoma not as clearly connected to the Atavistic Hypothesis.

The correct choice should be:

(c) There is intense selection for high rates of recombination and point mutations in certain cells in the immune system (beneficial to fighting off pathogens), despite the possibility of leukemia and lymphoma