# Eating tumors **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [December 23, 2002, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-tumors/144545 "2002-12-23T15:24:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![DrLiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90ced4/32.png) [@DrLiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrLiver)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-tumors/144545/1 "2002-12-23T15:24:28Z")
I was reading the following GQ thread: [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=152041](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=152041) And then **Qadgop the Mercotan** mentionned this: > [@](#): > > but as of yet there is no evidence showing that ingesting tumors which may or may not still have the viral genome in them will lead to the consumer getting said virus, much less said cancer. :eek: So, what if I started eating tumors (cooked, boiled, raw, whatever) instead of regular animal flesh (i.e. I keep a normal diet, only I replace flesh by tumors); what would be the consequences, healthwise? And, just in case someone tried it… would it have a good taste? -please rest assured, I have no real intention on starting a tumor based diet- ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-tumors/144545/2 "2002-12-23T19:23:47Z")
Some folks pronounce “turmeric” as “tu-murr-ic,” but it’s not made from tumors. I could drag this out, but I’m much too merciful. –Nott ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-tumors/144545/3 "2002-12-23T19:31:37Z")
Tumor! The other white… umm gray … umm mottled blackish yellow sort of spongy meat! Tumor! It’s what’s for dinner! ---
**Author:** ![DrLiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90ced4/32.png) [@DrLiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrLiver)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2003, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-tumors/144545/4 "2003-01-17T00:16:00Z")
I was expecting a little more information from the teeming millions… since I didn’t get a satisfactory response the first time, I’ll try again… so…anyone? P.S. if no one answers, I’ll just let the thread drop and die an ignorant man ---
**Author:** ![Tars\_Tarkas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Tars\_Tarkas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tars_Tarkas)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2003, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-tumors/144545/5 "2003-01-17T00:17:11Z")
Love me some Tumor Chips with salsa…munch munch crunch! A tooth! ---
**Author:** ![Goofus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/7feea3/32.png) [@Goofus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Goofus)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2003, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-tumors/144545/6 "2003-01-17T01:27:38Z")
I guess the nutritional value and taste would depend on what type of cancerous cells you are eating - cancerous liver cells, for example, would probably taste like regular liver. I can live without ever testing that theory, though. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2003, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-tumors/144545/7 "2003-01-17T01:50:34Z")
You would never die 😃 [http://www.thexfiles.com/episodes/season4/4x14.html](http://www.thexfiles.com/episodes/season4/4x14.html) ---
**Author:** ![DrLiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90ced4/32.png) [@DrLiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrLiver)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2003, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-tumors/144545/8 "2003-01-17T05:42:26Z")
elfkin477: Of course! Eating tumors results in immortality through giving berth to duplicates of myself!!:smack: It’s so obvious, why I couldn’t think of it myself!! ---
**Author:** ![phlebert](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c5a1d2/32.png) [@phlebert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phlebert)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2003, 6:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-tumors/144545/9 "2003-01-17T06:04:22Z")
dude… I would seriously answer your question if I had any idea. I don’t though, so I will just say Man, that is _ill_. I have a bad taste in my mouth just thinking about it… My guess though, is that it _really_ would depend on how it was prepared… plus my guess is that one type of tumor might be different from another… I am thinking deep fried… sorta like rocky mountain oysters… Here’s how nasty that is: I would choose the greazy bovine testicles _every single time_:eek: ---
**Author:** ![Manduck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/manduck/32/256_2.png) [@Manduck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Manduck)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2003, 8:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-tumors/144545/10 "2003-01-17T08:46:18Z")
I’ve eaten ground beef, sausage, meatloaf and the like countless times. If there was a tumour in there, would I even know about it? ---
**Author:** ![Delta-9](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/3be4f8/32.png) [@Delta-9](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Delta-9)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2003, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-tumors/144545/11 "2003-01-17T14:36:43Z")
I knew I shouldn’t have opened this thread. But did I look the other way and keep on going? Noooo. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![PosterChild](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/e274bd/32.png) [@PosterChild](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PosterChild)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2003, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-tumors/144545/12 "2003-01-17T15:13:04Z")
Alright, I’ll try a “serious” answer: Not Much. Most tumors are not the result of virus infections\* (with some noteable exceptions like cervical cancer) and the food preparation would kill the few (unlikely) cells that were not already dead, so basically it would be like eating any other tissue. (The digestive process would most likely take care of the living cells if you prefered your tumor, raw, also.) The nutrient content would depend on two main factors: the tissue of origin and the extent of de-differentiation. Generally, there is little turn over in fully differentiated (adult) tissues so cancers are often the result cellular “childhood regression.” 🙂 So how much the tumor was nutrionally like the original tissue would depend on this. I would not expect it to be much of a threat health-wise. \*I would expect the viruses to be likely destroyed by cooking as well, but I’m less sure of that. PC ---
**Author:** ![Davebear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bcef8e/32.png) [@Davebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Davebear)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2003, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eating-tumors/144545/13 "2003-01-17T15:26:30Z")
_Someone_ has to ask; why is a guy whose handle is Doctor (Dr) Liver asking the rest of us a quasi-medical question? And, I have to say the whole gestalt of doctor, liver, and the eating of bizarre stuff is giving me a very creepy, Jeffrey Dahmer kind of feeling. Aside from all that, and bearing in mind that IANA doctor, my understanding is there generally isn’t much difference in the composition of tumorous cells compared to the normal cells they derive from. I don’t think tumors generally produce toxins. So, my guess is there wouldn’t be much effect. Except that no one would want to admit they know you. (Well, okay. No one except the ‘Put me on TV! I knew him!’ neighbor.)