Rifkin, Riaan F.Potgieter, MarnieRamond, Jean-BaptisteCowan, Don A.2018-03-122018-03-122017-12Rifkin RF, Potgieter M, Ramond J-B, Cowan DA. Ancient oncogenesis, infection and human evolution. Evol Appl. 2017;10:949–964. https://doi.org/ 10.1111/eva.12497.1752-4563 (print)1752-4571 (online)10.1111/eva.12497http://hdl.handle.net/2263/64204The recent discovery that malignant neoplastic lesions date back nearly 2 million years ago not only highlights the antiquity of cancer in the human lineage, but also provides remarkable insight into ancestral hominin disease pathology. Using these Early Pleistocene examples as a point of departure, we emphasize the prominent role of viral and bacterial pathogens in oncogenesis and evaluate the impact of pathogens on human evolutionary processes in Africa. In the Shakespearean vernacular “what’s past is prologue,” we highlight the significance of novel information derived from ancient pathogenic DNA. In particular, and given the temporal depth of human occupation in sub-Saharan Africa, it is emphasized that the region is ideally positioned to play a strategic role in the discovery of ancient pathogenic drivers of not only human mortality, but also human evolution. Ancient African pathogen genome data can provide novel revelations concerning human-pathogen coevolutionary processes, and such knowledge is essential for forecasting the ways in which emerging zoonotic and increasingly transmissible diseases might influence human demography and longevity in the future.en© 2017 The Authors. Evolutionary Applications published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License.Ancient DNAAustralopithecusHomoOncogenesisPathogensPleistoceneSub-Saharan AfricaClimate changeEpidemiologic transitionHelicobacter pyloriCancer preventionHuman populationsHunter gatherersGenome sequenceYersinia pestisInfluenza virusDNA sequenceArticle