Uploaded May 2018 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
Athena Aktipis, Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology; Lincoln Professor, Lincoln Center for Applied Ethics; Director, Cooperation and Conflict Lab, Arizona State University
Humans are not alone in their struggle with cancer. All multicellular organisms grapple with this disease because cancer is intricately linked to the evolution of multicellularity and to the systems of cellular cooperation that enable complex organisms to thrive. Evolution underlies the processes that lead cancer cells to overproliferate and overconsume resources as well as their ability to resist aggressive medical treatments. Athena Aktipis will discuss how an evolutionary approach to understanding and treating cancer can transform it from being a disease that threatens our lives to one we can live with, as our multicellular ancestors have for millions of years.
Recorded 4/4/18
Athena Aktipis, Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology; Lincoln Professor, Lincoln Center for Applied Ethics; Director, Cooperation and Conflict Lab, Arizona State University
Humans are not alone in their struggle with cancer. All multicellular organisms grapple with this disease because cancer is intricately linked to the evolution of multicellularity and to the systems of cellular cooperation that enable complex organisms to thrive. Evolution underlies the processes that lead cancer cells to overproliferate and overconsume resources as well as their ability to resist aggressive medical treatments. Athena Aktipis will discuss how an evolutionary approach to understanding and treating cancer can transform it from being a disease that threatens our lives to one we can live with, as our multicellular ancestors have for millions of years.
Recorded 4/4/18
