# Immortal Sharks **URL:** \ **Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\ **Created:** [October 22, 2004, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/immortal-sharks/270696 "2004-10-22T23:36:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2004, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/immortal-sharks/270696/1 "2004-10-22T23:36:54Z")
Yay! I’m the first to comment on [today’s piece!](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/041022.html) At the end, Unca Cecil asks parentheticlly “Does she think sharks are immortal?” Of course sharks aren’t immortal! Poroises are immortal. Which is why it’s against the law to transport gulls across staid lions for immortal porpoises. (Sorry. I couldn’t help myself.) ---
**Author:** ![rjk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ed655f/32.png) [@rjk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rjk)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2004, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/immortal-sharks/270696/2 "2004-10-23T00:09:53Z")
OK, I’ll be the first with a _serious_ (if tangential) comment. The questioner reports the pharmacist saying that > [@](#): > > sharks only die from being eaten or from starvation after they lose their teeth. and asks if it’s true. Cecil of course dismisses the idea that sharks only die from being eaten (they do get cancer), but ignores the other proposed cause of death. In fact, sharks are losing teeth all the time, just not all at _the same_ time. Their teeth are just overgrown scales, and drop off as they get worn down, but there are new ones growing behind them. See a nice article at [Teeth of the Skin](http://www.elasmo-research.org/education/white_shark/teeth.htm). ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Fight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/90ced4/32.png) [@Cat\_Fight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Fight)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2004, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/immortal-sharks/270696/3 "2004-10-23T02:30:43Z")
> [@](#): > > Does shark cartilage prevent cancer? You know, I was really hoping for a simple ‘Yes. Yes it does.’ ---
**Author:** ![Candy\_Lover](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ce7236/32.png) [@Candy\_Lover](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Candy_Lover)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2004, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/immortal-sharks/270696/4 "2004-10-23T13:39:20Z")
> [@Cat Fight](#): > > You know, I was really hoping for a simple ‘Yes. Yes it does.’ Why? Didn’t you like, “No. No it doesn’t?” 😉 ---
**Author:** ![C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_K_Dexter_Haven)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2004, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/immortal-sharks/270696/5 "2004-10-23T14:08:42Z")
Congrats, **Cal** , on being the first to post about that column. HOWEVER, he said, clearing his throat emphatically, the first person to post about a column has the obligation to provide a link to the column. It helps keep us all on the same page, it saves searching time and energy, and it’s especially helpful for those reading the thread next week or the week after, when the column is no longer on the front page. OK? ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2004, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/immortal-sharks/270696/6 "2004-10-25T02:36:15Z")
> [@](#): > > It helps keep us all on the same page, it saves searching time and energy, and it’s especially helpful for those reading the thread next week or the week after, when the column is no longer on the front page. > > OK? Damn! Coulda sworn I did – I copied th URL and everything. Must got lost in my excitement. ---
**Author:** ![norinew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/eb9ed0/32.png) [@norinew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/norinew)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2004, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/immortal-sharks/270696/7 "2004-10-25T19:17:09Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > Damn! Coulda sworn I did – I copied th URL and everything. Must got lost in my excitement. Then for the love of Og, search your excitement! It must still be in there somewhere! 😉 ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2004, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/immortal-sharks/270696/8 "2004-10-26T21:48:27Z")
The main reason not to take shark cartilage _for anything_ is that sharks simply don’t reproduce fast enough to replace any members killed for medicinal purposes. Even if shark cartilage does work for something, harvesting it from wild sharks will tend to lead to their extinction, making it impossible for future generations of scientists to study how it works, how well it works, & how to sustainably synthesize it.