Cancer: depriving the lymphatic system of fat could stop metastasis

Belgian researchers have presented new data on the role of fats in the migration of cancer cells to new sites. Their findings will pave the way for a better understanding of how the disease spreads.

When cancer cells spread through the body, they often migrate via pre-existing or new lymphatic vessels.

Until now the formation of new lymphatic vessels, a process known as lymphangiogenesis, has been poorly understood.

But researchers at the Vlaams Institute for Biotechnology in Leuven, Belgium, have discovered that a shift to increased fat utilization is required for the development of these new lymphatic vessels.

“Our study shows that the usage of fat by lymphatics is programmed in their development, and required for their growth and function. We have demonstrated by enhancing or preventing the usage of fat (or fat byproducts), we can control the growth of lymphatics,” explains Dr. Brian Wong who led the study team.

Though drugs to prevent this process will not be available anytime soon, the findings, published in the journal Nature, mark a first step towards the development of future treatments.

As of now there is a lack of clinically approved drugs to prevent the growth of metastatic tumors. In the near future, the researchers plan to evaluate fat usage inhibitors in large-scale tests that will provide more data on their capacity to reduce metastasis in different types of cancer.

At the same time, they aim to investigate whether dietary fat supplements (for instance in the form of ketone bodies, used by athletes) can be used to treat lymphedema, localized tissue swelling that is often caused by cancer treatments that compromise patients’ lymphatic systems.