Alfred Knudson

Alfred Knudson was a scientist who studied how cancer develops, particularly focusing on inherited cases. He proposed the "two-hit hypothesis," which explains that certain cancers, like retinoblastoma (an eye cancer in children), require two genetic changes or mutations to cause the disease. If a person inherits one mutated gene, they need only one more mutation to develop cancer, making it more likely. If not inherited, both mutations must happen in the same cell. His work helped scientists understand genetic risk factors in cancer and the importance of genetic mutations in its development.