Researchers report that tissue samples from the colon, duodenum, esophagus, and sinuses of more than 300 people exhibited slower cell division rates in people between ages 80 and 89 years than in people between ages 20 and 29 years, suggesting that slowdown of cell division may explain a decrease in cancer incidence in elderly populations; the study also found that mice do not exhibit similar age-dependent cell division slowdown.
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Article #19-05722: “Cell division rates decrease with age, providing a potential explanation for the age-dependent deceleration in cancer incidence,” by Cristian Tomasetti et al.
MEDIA CONTACTS: Bert Vogelstein, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD; e-mail: ; Cristian Tomasetti, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD; e-mail: bertvog@gmail.com
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences