https://phys.org/news/2019-01-herpes-viruses-tumors-evolved-ancient.html

The researchers believe that both viruses and cancer cells figured out how to use this RNA because they both rapidly evolve to test out different strategies to multiply and spread within the body over time. Researchers have yet to understand whether herpes and cancer came upon this strategy coincidentally or whether they work hand in hand in some cases. Several researchers involved in this work pioneered the study of how a different type of RNA affects tumor evolution.

"The evolution of tumors can teach us about viruses and vice versa, and understanding one system may help us treat the other," said one of the study's senior authors, Benjamin Greenbaum, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Oncological Sciences, Pathology, and Medicine (Hematology and Medical Oncology) at The Tisch Cancer Institute at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. "The HSATII RNA induction seen in herpes infections and cancer cells suggests possible convergence upon common mechanisms in these seemingly disparate diseases."