The ketogenic diet, known for its benefits in weight loss and disease prevention, may have a new application: fighting cancer. A recent study published in the journal Cell Metabolism suggests that the keto diet could starve tumors by depriving them of glucose, hindering their growth. The research conducted on mice with pancreatic and colorectal cancer revealed that the diet triggered the accumulation of toxic lipid byproducts, leading to the death of cancer cells through a process called ferroptosis.
While the trial showed promising results in tumour reduction, it also revealed a potentially fatal side effect known as cachexia. Cachexia is a wasting disorder characterised by significant weight loss, appetite loss, exhaustion, and immunological suppression. Unfortunately, there is presently no effective therapy, and it causes around 2 million fatalities each year. Cachexia, characterised by Professor Tobias Janowitz of Cold Spring Harbour Laboratory in New York as a wound that does not heal, is common among cancer patients, often impairing their capacity to take anti-cancer medicines.
To address the issue of cachexia, researchers sought to separate the cancer-fighting benefits of the keto diet from its detrimental effects. They discovered that when the keto diet was combined with corticosteroids, a common class of drugs, cachexia could be prevented in mice with cancer. The tumours in these mice shrank, and their overall survival increased. By administering corticosteroids, which helped regulate the effects of the keto diet, the researchers were able to mitigate cachexia without compromising the diet’s anti-cancer properties.
The study emphasises that cancer is a complex disease that affects the entire body, reprogramming normal biological processes to facilitate its growth. While healthy mice on the keto diet can adapt and maintain their weight, mice with cancer struggle due to the depletion of a hormone called corticosterone. However, when the hormone was replaced with a corticosteroid, the mice responded favourably, living longer than those subjected to other treatments.
In the future, researchers hope to improve the timing and dosage of corticosteroids in order to extend the window of effective cancer therapy when combined with the keto diet. The goal is to further reduce tumour growth and improve overall treatment efficiency, thereby helping patients and enhancing cancer therapies.
The study’s findings shed insight on the ketogenic diet’s potential as a unique strategy to cancer treatment. Researchers have uncovered a promising option for future therapeutics by utilising the diet’s propensity to starve tumours of glucose. More research is needed, however, to fully grasp the complexities and potential negative effects of combining the keto diet and corticosteroids. With additional research, the main objective is to find more effective medicines and improve patient outcomes.