Palmitic acid, a fatty acid commonly used in palm oil but also sometimes in butter and olive oil, would promote metastases in skin and mouth cancers.
- Palmitic acid generates a “memory” in the body of patients which means that they are exposed to its harmful effects in the long term.
- This memory would be due to epigenetic changes that promote the spread of cancer cells.
- Researchers will test an antibody treatment that could stem this phenomenon and why not control metastases
The high level of saturated fatty acids that increase bad cholesterol is not the only negative health effect of palm oil. In a new study published on November 10 in the journal Nature, British researchers suggest that the palmitic acid in palm oil alters the cancer genome and increases the likelihood that skin and mouth cancers will spread. Researchers have started developing therapies that interrupt this process and hope to start a clinical trial within the next two years.
Epigenetic changes
Researchers have found that palmitic acid creates a “memory” in the body of patients who consume it, which makes it particularly dangerous. In experiments conducted on mice to which they added palmitic acid to their diet, they found long-term effects on the genome. Cancer cells that had been exposed to palmitic acid for only a short time remained highly metastatic even when the drug was removed from the diet.
The authors believe that this memory is due to epigenetic changes, or changes in the functioning of our genes. Subsequently, these changes alter the function of metastatic cancer cells and allow them to form a neural network around the tumor to communicate with cells in their immediate environment and spread more easily.
Antibody treatment soon?
Regarding the diet, at this stage, the researchers believe that it would be too hasty to say with certainty that it must be changed completely. “I think it is too early to determine what type of diet could be consumed by patients with metastatic cancer that would slow its progressionadds Salvador Aznar-Benitah, the lead author of the study. That said, based on our results, one would think that a diet low in palmitic acid might be effective in slowing the metastatic process, but much more work is needed to determine this..”
But researchers believe the discovery has helped identify a way to stop metastasis in different types of cancer. They are currently developing antibodies capable of interrupting communication between metastatic cancer cells and other cells and thus stopping their spread. “If things continue as planned, we could start the first clinical trial in a few years.hopes Salvador Aznar-Benitah. I am very excited about this and we are investing a lot of effort to generate the best possible therapy that cancer patients will hopefully be able to benefit from in the near future.”
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