
About this episode
The episode explores the phenomenon of fetal cells remaining in parents' bodies and their potential roles over time.
Fetuses leave cells behind in their parents' bodies, where they braid themselves into tissues, and remain, for years. What are they doing in there? Guests: Amy Boddy, Associate Professor of Anthropology at the University of California, Santa Barbara; Lee Nelson, Professor Emeritus at the Fred Hutch Cancer Center For show transcripts, go to vox.com/unxtranscripts For more, go to vox.com/unexplainable And please email us! unexplainable@vox.com We read every email. Support Unexplainable (and get ad-free episodes) by becoming a Vox Member today: vox.com/members Thank you! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
People in this episode
Guests: Amy Boddy, Lee Nelson
Topics covered
- fetal cells
- parenting
- cell biology
- tissue integration
- anthropology
Keywords
- fetal cells
- tissues
- anthropology
- cell integration
- parental biology
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: University of California, Santa Barbara, Fred Hutch Cancer Center, Vox
More episodes of Unexplainable
- A new species in New York · June 10, 2026 · 26 min
- The disaster problem · June 8, 2026 · 1h 0m
- The lost Lyme vaccine · June 3, 2026 · 38 min
- The man who bet against humanity — and lost · May 20, 2026 · 17 min
- The aftermath · May 18, 2026 · 42 min
- A better Black Death story · May 13, 2026 · 32 min
Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Unexplainable podcast page.