It may all be about to a protein. The world may be on its knees in obeisance to a molecule's power. Coronaviruses have a unique ability to eradicate tumor cells.

Different viruses are currently being assessed for their capacity to function as anti-tumor agents, supplementing conventional cancer therapies. There are great potentials of a novel oncolytic virus, the murine hepatitis coronavirus (MHV), in destroying tumor cells in vitro.

Previous studies showed that the murine host cell tropism of MHV could be changed by substituting its spike protein, necessary for cellular binding and internalization, by the feline coronavirus counterpart. However, what can be oncolytic, can also be oncogenic. SARS-CoV-2 degrades p53, which is a tumor suppressor. It degrades it to the point that it no longer can protect human DNA. It is entirely likely that during SARS-CoV-2 infection, DNA damage is done that initiates tumor development. This is, perhaps, the most extreme danger we are facing.