News Animals

Bowhead whales may have a cancer-defying superpower: DNA repair

The ability could help the marine mammals live for more than 200 years

An overhead photo of a black bowhead whale mother with a smaller gray bowhead whale child swimming on the surface of icy water.

Bowhead whales (a mother and calf shown here) are the world’s longest living mammals. Enhanced ability to repair DNA may be key to their longevity.

National Ocean Service/NOAA (CC BY-NC 2.0)

By Meghan Rosen

Near the northern tip of Alaska, on the outskirts of the Arctic Ocean, bowhead whales have given scientists a glimpse into longevity.

The gigantic marine mammals can live more than 200 years — and tissue samples collected from the animals reveal a fix-it superpower that might explain how.