Laron Syndrome is an extremely rare disorder that causes those affected to experience slow physical growth from early childhood. Without treatment, males typically grow to a height of 4.5 feet, and females, 4 feet. In a remote village in Ecuador, there is a group of 100 individuals who all have this disease. Interestingly enough, over the past 30 years, in this population, only one individual has died from cancer. This suggests that something about the disease might make one more resistant to cancer.
Researchers propose that those with Laron Syndrome have a defect in a growth hormone receptor which helps produce IGF-1. Thus-- they are looking for a link in the lack of production of IGF-1 and the absence of cancer in this population.