Beyond sweet: Study finds common sugar may help cancer cells spread

Imagine cancer as a heavily fortified castle. For decades, oncologists watched in frustration as tumors seemed to mount a comeback even after seemingly successful chemotherapy—as if invisible reinforcements had managed to slip right past the gates.

Surprisingly, now, scientists have discovered that the enemy inside may reveal a different perspective.

Recent scientific findings from The Wistar Institute have highlighted a novel mechanism involving fructose—a common dietary sugar and its role in the spread of aggressive cancers like ovarian cancer.

According to groundbreaking research, a common dietary sugar we consume every day isn't just fuel and it also acts as a molecular weapon, chemically signaling dormant cancer cells to drop their defenses, break free, and spread across the body.

Researchers discovered that cancer cells surviving chemotherapy are not just dormant; they actively release chemical messages.

Specifically, these surviving cells produce and release fructose to act as a signal that prompts neighboring, treatment-resistant tumor cells to loosen, escape, and metastasize.

The study found that high levels of dietary fructose comparable to amounts, sprecially those found in typical sugary beverages and high-fructose corn syrup can similarly encourage cancer spread, even in the absence of chemotherapy.

Precisely, using genetic screening, the research team found that fructose alters cell behavior by lowering cholesterol production inside neighboring cancer cells, effectively helping them break free.

While the study specifically centered on ovarian cancer, the research team believes this exact signaling pathway could apply to other cancers that spread within the torso, such as pancreatic, colon and liver cancers.

The research was originally published in the journal, Nature Aging.