Cancer Spread From One Identical Twin to the Other in the Womb, Scientists Find

Though cancer is a common condition, affecting around one-third of people, it can sometimes show up in very unusual ways. Doctors in the UK have just documented an incredibly rare—and ultimately tragic—case of cancer shared between identical twins in the womb.

Scientists at the Wellcome Sanger Institute and others detailed the case in a report last week. One twin developed the cancer, which then spread to the other, they found. Unfortunately, neither child survived, but the lessons learned from the…