Will starving cancer cells of glucose prevent cancer?
Recently I was asked if starving cancer cells of glucose will have an impact on the progression on cancer in the human body. Here are some facts that you should know.
Cancer cells use a variety of nutrients to grow, including:
Glucose: Cancer cells require a lot of glucose to grow quickly. Glucose is imported into cells through glucose transporters and phosphorylated by hexokinase to glucose-6-phosphate. So reducing glucose may slow down cancer's progression.
Glutamine: An amino acid that's central to several biochemical pathways that cancer cells use to build new cell parts.
Amino acids: Cancer cells can use amino acids as an alternative fuel. Arginine is an amino acid that's essential for cancer cells.
Lactate: Cancer cells can use lactate as an alternative fuel.
Acetate: Cancer cells can use acetate as an alternative fuel.
Macromolecules: Cancer cells can use macromolecules as an alternative fuel.
Cancer cells use a different chemical process to make energy from glucose compared to healthy cells. Cancer cells use a process called aerobic glycolysis or the Warburg effect glycolysis to produce energy even when oxygen is available, while normal cells only use anaerobic glycolysis when oxygen is absent or limiting.
Can cancer cells be starved of glucose?
Yes, cancer cells can be starved of glucose, but it's not possible to do so without also harming healthy cells:
Cancer cells use glucose
Cancer cells use glucose for energy and to build the cellular compounds that help tumors grow quickly.
Cancer cells can survive without glucose
Cancer cells have proteins that allow them to switch to a different biochemical path when glucose is unavailable.
It's not possible to starve cancer cells without harming healthy cells
It's not currently possible to selectively starve cancer cells of glucose without also harming healthy cells.
Other nutrients are also needed
Cancer cells also need other nutrients to grow, such as fats and amino acids.
Some approaches to starve cancer cells of glucose include:
Glucose oxidase
This method uses glucose oxidase to convert glucose to gluconic acid and hydrogen peroxide, which can kill cancer cells. However, this process can also create local hypoxia, which can limit the effectiveness of the treatment.
Short-term starvation
Short-term starvation or fasting can kill cancer cells without harming normal cells. However, most patients can't fast for three to five days, so alternate day fasting or protein restriction may be similar.
Conclusion Reducing sugar and glucose can help cancer patients. Intermittent fasting where your body enters into a ketosis state can also help reduce the risk of cancer. But your healthy cells also need glucose to function. Thus, a complete elimination might harm your healthy cells. Therefore, you should not completely avoid sugar and glucose if you have cancer. Sugar itself does not cause cancer and there are no way to starve cancer cells of glucose without harming healthy cells. Furthermore, cancer patients need adequate nutrition to help their bodies cope with treatment and too many food restrictions can keep cancer patients from eating enough or cause unnecessary stress. Small amounts of sugar are okay even after cancer is diagnosed. Small amount of sugar in meal replacement drinks is not a concern if they help nourish you with essential vitamins and protein during treatment. MCT which brings the body into a ketosis state will also be helpful.
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