Episode Details

Scientists have uncovered a bizarre, contagious cancer in brown bullhead catfish that behaves more like a parasite than a tumor, spreading between fish via black, raised lesions. First spotted around 2012 and rampant by 2014, the cancer defies typical environmental triggers like UV exposure, and genetic analysis reveals the cancer cells are more alike across fish than the fish themselves—proof it’s being passed from host to host. Despite concerns over nearby pollution from the Coventry Landfill and PFAS contamination in Lake Memphremagog, the cancer is widespread across the lake and even found in other New England and Canadian lakes without obvious pollution sources. This may be the first known transmissible cancer in freshwater fish, echoing rare cases in dogs and Tasmanian devils—and could unlock new insights into how such diseases spread across species.

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