Susanna Fletcher Greer, Chief Scientific Officer at the V Foundation, shared a post on LinkedIn about a recent article by Tianshi Feng et al, published in Nature Metabolism:
“We’ve long known that sugar-sweetened beverages like sodas, energy drinks, and sweetened juices aren’t good for our health. But new research from the V Foundation grantee Dr. Jihye Yun at MD Anderson Cancer Center takes this concern a step further: these drinks don’t just increase the risk of colorectal cancer, they may also help tumors spread once cancer has developed.
Dr. Yun and team recently published a study in Nature Metabolism showing how the combination of glucose and fructose (the sugars found together in sugar sweetened beverages) can fuel colorectal cancer metastasis, or spread.
Dr. Yun found that when both sugars are present, cancer cells “rewire” their metabolism through a protein called SORD. This shift boosts energy production and activates pathways that help cancer cells move, invade, and ultimately spread to other organs.
Why do these findings matter?
- Metastasis is deadly. Most people with colorectal cancer don’t die from the primary tumor but from its spread to other organs. Anything that accelerates this process demands urgent attention.
- Sugary drinks are common. Over half of U.S. adults and nearly two-thirds of kids consume them daily. Alarmingly, some patients may still drink them even after diagnosis, sometimes even in the form of “energy drinks” or concentrated juices recommended for extra calories.
- There may be solutions. This study highlights possible strategies to interrupt this process, including targeting the SORD protein directly or by repurposing existing drugs like statins.
But to ME the CLEAREST takeaway is that reducing sugary drink consumption could be a powerful, accessible way to improve outcomes.
At the V Foundation, we fund research that changes the way we think about cancer prevention and treatment. This discovery underscores the power of science to uncover drivers of cancer progression, and the urgent need to translate these discoveries into guidance and therapies that save lives.
Bottom line: How Cutting Back on Sugary Drinks Could Help Prevent Colorectal Cancer Metastasis
Find the Yun lab at Jihye Yun | MD Anderson Cancer Center and read this incredible paper.”
Title: Fructose and glucose from sugary drinks enhance colorectal cancer metastasis via SORD
Author: Tianshi Feng, Qin Luo, Yanlin Liu, Zeyu Jin, David Skwarchuk, Rumi Lee, Miso Nam, John M. Asara, Daya R. Adye, Philip L. Lorenzi, Lin Tan, Guangsheng Pei, Zhongming Zhao, Neda Zarrin-Khameh, Adriana Paulucci-Holthauzen, Brian W. Simons, Ju-Seog Lee, Scott Kopetz, Jihye Yun
Read the Full Article on Nature Metabolism
More posts featuring Susanna Fletcher Greer.