Dairy milk fat augments paclitaxel therapy to suppress tumour metastasis in mice, and protects against the side-effects of chemotherapy

Dietary interventions and tumor response to chemotherapy in breast cancer: A comprehensive review of preclinical and clinical data

BACKGROUND & AIMS

Optimizing treatment efficacy is still a critical part in advancing the treatment of breast cancer. Dietary interventions have drawn significant attention for their potential to increase tumor sensitivity, with a plethora of strategies evaluated both preclinically and clinically. The aim of this paper is to explore these strategies, ranging from entire dietary programs to specific supplements, for their potential to directly enhance tumor sensitivity and chemotherapy adherence.

METHODS

PubMed, Scopus, Embase and Web of Science databases were searched up to September 2023. In this comprehensive review, preclinical and clinical research on dietary interventions used in conjunction with chemotherapy for breast cancer was examined and synthesized, to identify potential causal mechanisms.

RESULTS

42 studies in total were identified and synthesized, 32 pre-clinical and 8 clinical studies.

CONCLUSION

Although a topic of intense interest, the heterogeneity in approaches has resulted in a large but minimally impactful evidence base, further complicated by a limited understanding of the mechanisms at play. This review highlights the areas for further research to increase opportunities for nutritional-based interventions as adjuvant to chemotherapy for breast cancer.

Adjusting the dose of traditional drugs combined with immunotherapy: reshaping the immune microenvironment in lung cancer

Immunotherapy is currently the most promising clinical treatment for lung cancer, not only revolutionizing second-line therapy but now also approved for first-line treatment. However, its clinical efficiency is not high and not all patients benefit from it. Thus, finding the best combination strategy to expand anti-PD-1/PD-L1-based immunotherapy is now a hot research topic. The conventional use of chemotherapeutic drugs and targeted drugs inevitably leads to resistance, toxic side effects and other problems. Recent research, however, suggests that by adjusting the dosage of drugs and blocking the activation of mutational mechanisms that depend on acquired resistance, it is possible to reduce toxic side effects, activate immune cells, and reshape the immune microenvironment of lung cancer. Here, we discuss the effects of different chemotherapeutic drugs and targeted drugs on the immune microenvironment. We explore the effects of adjusting the dosing sequence and timing, and the mechanisms of such responses, and show how the effectiveness and reliability of combined immunotherapy provide improved treatment outcomes.

Enhancement of Anti-Tumoral Immunity by β-Casomorphin-7 Inhibits Cancer Development and Metastasis of Colorectal Cancer

β-Casomorphin-7 (BCM) is a degradation product of β-casein, a milk component, and has been suggested to affect the immune system. However, its effect on mucosal immunity, especially anti-tumor immunity, in cancer-bearing individuals is not clear. We investigated the effects of BCM on lymphocytes using an in vitro system comprising mouse splenocytes, a mouse colorectal carcinogenesis model, and a mouse orthotopic colorectal cancer model. Treatment of mouse splenocytes with BCM in vitro reduced numbers of cluster of differentiation (CD) 20⁺ B cells, CD4⁺ T cells, and regulatory T cells (Tregs), and increased CD8⁺ T cells. Administration of BCM and the CD10 inhibitor thiorphan (TOP) to mice resulted in similar alterations in the lymphocyte subsets in the spleen and intestinal mucosa. BCM was degraded in a concentration- and time-dependent manner by the neutral endopeptidase CD10, and the formed BCM degradation product did not affect the lymphocyte counts. Furthermore, degradation was completely suppressed by TOP. In the azoxymethane mouse colorectal carcinogenesis model, the incidence of aberrant crypt foci, adenoma, and adenocarcinoma was reduced by co-treatment with BCM and TOP. Furthermore, when CT26 mouse colon cancer cells were inoculated into the cecum of syngeneic BALB/c mice and concurrently treated with BCM and TOP, infiltration of CD8⁺ T cells was promoted, and tumor growth and liver metastasis were suppressed. These results suggest that by suppressing the BCM degradation system, the anti-tumor effect of BCM is enhanced and it can suppress the development and progression of colorectal cancer.

Silver nanoparticles enhance the apoptotic potential of gemcitabine in human ovarian cancer cells: combination therapy for effective cancer treatment

Background

Gemcitabine (GEM) is widely used as an anticancer agent in several types of solid tumors. Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) possess unique cytotoxic features and can induce apoptosis in a variety of cancer cells. In this study, we investigated whether the combination of GEM and AgNPs can exert synergistic cytotoxic effects in the human ovarian cancer cell line A2780.

Methods

We synthesized AgNPs using resveratrol as a reducing and stabilizing agent. The synthesized nanomaterials were characterized using various analytical techniques. The anticancer effects of a combined treatment with GEM and AgNPs were evaluated using a series of cellular assays. The expression of pro- and antiapoptotic genes was measured using real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction. Apoptosis was confirmed by TUNEL assay.

Results

In this study, combined treatment with GEM and AgNPs significantly inhibited viability and proliferation in A2780 cells. Moreover, the levels of apoptosis in cells treated with a combination of GEM and AgNPs were significantly higher compared with those in cells treated with GEM or AgNPs alone. Our data suggest that GEM and AgNPs exhibit potent apoptotic activity in human ovarian cancer cells. Combined treatment with GEM and AgNPs showed a significantly higher cytotoxic effect in ovarian cancer cells compared with that induced by either of these agents alone.

Conclusion

Our study demonstrated that the interaction between GEM and AgNPs was cytotoxic in ovarian cancer cells. Combined treatment with GEM and AgNPs caused increased cytotoxicity and apoptosis in A2780 cells. This treatment may have therapeutic potential as targeted therapy for the treatment of ovarian cancer. To our knowledge, this study could provide evidence that AgNPs can enhance responsiveness to GEM in ovarian cancer cells and that AgNPs can potentially be used as chemosensitizing agents in ovarian cancer therapy.

A randomised phase IIb trial to assess the efficacy of ReCharge ice cream in preventing chemotherapy-induced diarrhoea

PURPOSE

Chemotherapy-induced diarrhoea (CID) has a significant impact. A medicinal food product (ReCharge) containing iron-saturated lactoferrin and anhydrous milk fat reduces the detrimental effects of chemotherapy on the gut in animals. We report results of a randomised blinded placebo-controlled phase IIb trial investigating the efficacy and safety of ReCharge in preventing CID.

METHODS

Eligible patients were adults due to start the first cycle of a 2- or 3-week-cycle chemotherapy regimen, had an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) status of 3 or less, had adequate haematological, liver and renal function and provided written informed consent. Patients (197) were randomised to ReCharge or placebo. They consumed 100-g study product for 2 weeks before and 6 weeks after starting chemotherapy, completed daily diaries for 8 weeks and attended clinic visits until 12 weeks (2-week cycles) or 14 weeks (3-week cycles). The primary outcome was days with CID.

RESULTS

The mean number of days with diary-recorded CID was marginally but not statistically significantly lower on ReCharge than placebo (-2.0, 95 % CI (-4.7 to 0.7), p = 0.2). The proportion reporting diarrhoea in the previous cycle at the clinic visit was 30 % lower (p = 0.012) on ReCharge. Missing diary data may have contributed to the discrepancy. No significant differences were found in quality of life or other adverse events.

CONCLUSIONS

We found no clear evidence that ReCharge reduced CID as measured by patient self-report diary. The converse finding of benefit as recorded at clinic visits and incomplete adherence to diary completion indicates that further research is required into methods for measuring CID.

Hepatic steatosis is associated with lower incidence of liver metastasis from colorectal cancer

PURPOSE

Both hepatic steatosis (HS) and colorectal cancer (CRC) are conditions associated with metabolic syndrome. The liver is the most frequent site of distant metastasis of CRC; however, the impact of HS on the incidence of liver metastasis of CRC is not clearly defined. Then, the correlation with the presence or absence of HS was analyzed.

METHODS

A total of 604 CRC patients receiving curative surgical resection who had a preoperative non-enhanced computed tomography (CT) were enrolled. The mean attenuation values (in Hounsfield units) of the liver and spleen were obtained on a plain CT slice, and the patients with liver-spleen attenuation ratio lower than 1.1 were objectively defined as HS. The clinicopathological features of these patients were analyzed, and the association between HS and the clinical features of CRC was examined.

RESULTS

Sixty-three (10.4%) among the 604 patients were diagnosed as HS. Recurrence-free survival (RFS) and hepatic RFS, but not extrahepatic RFS, were significantly higher in the group with HS (p = 0.04 and p = 0.006). However, this effect was not evident in the group of patients with obesity, defined as body mass index > 25.0. Among the stage I~III cases, HS was significantly associated with lower hepatic, but not extrahepatic, RFS. Moreover, absence of HS was an independent risk factor for hepatic RFS (p = 0.003).

CONCLUSION

Metastases of CRC are less frequent in fatty liver. Steatosis may be an unfavorable microenvironment for metastatic formation in the liver.

High- and low-fat dairy intake, recurrence, and mortality after breast cancer diagnosis

BACKGROUND

Dietary fat in dairy is a source of estrogenic hormones and may be related to worse breast cancer survival. We evaluated associations between high- and low-fat dairy intake, recurrence, and mortality after breast cancer diagnosis.

METHODS

We included 1893 women from the Life After Cancer Epidemiology study diagnosed with early-stage invasive breast cancer from 1997 to 2000, who completed the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center Food Frequency Questionnaire after diagnosis. A total of 349 women had a recurrence and 372 died during a median follow-up of 11.8 years, with 189 deaths from breast cancer. We used delayed entry Cox proportional hazards regression to evaluate associations between categories of the cumulative average of dairy fat at baseline and at follow-up 5 to 6 years later and subsequent outcomes. Tests of statistical significance were two-sided.

RESULTS

In multivariable-adjusted analyses, overall dairy intake was unrelated to breast cancer-specific outcomes, although it was positively related to overall mortality. Low-fat dairy intake was unrelated to recurrence or survival. However, high-fat dairy intake was positively associated with outcomes. Compared with the reference (0 to <0.5 servings/day), those consuming larger amounts of high-fat dairy had higher breast cancer mortality (0.5 to <1.0 servings/day: hazard ratio [HR] = 1.20, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.82 to 1.77; and ≥1.0 servings/day: HR = 1.49, 95% CI = 1.00 to 2.24, P trend = .05), higher all-cause mortality (P trend < .001), and higher non-breast cancer mortality (P trend = .007); the relationship with breast cancer recurrence was positive but not statistically significant. The higher risk appeared consistent across different types of high-fat dairy products.

CONCLUSIONS

Intake of high-fat dairy, but not low-fat dairy, was related to a higher risk of mortality after breast cancer diagnosis.

Althaea rosea Cavanil and Plantago major L. suppress neoplastic cell transformation through the inhibition of epidermal growth factor receptor kinase

For thousands of years in Asia, Althaea rosea Cavanil (ARC) and Plantago major L. (PML) have been used as powerful non-toxic therapeutic agents that inhibit inflammation. However, the anticancer mechanisms and molecular targets of ARC and PML are poorly understood, particularly in epidermal growth factor (EGF)-induced neoplastic cell transformation. The aim of this study was to evaluate the chemopreventive effects and mechanisms of the methanol extracts from ARC (MARC) and PML (MPML) in EGF-induced neoplastic cell transformation of JB6 P+ mouse epidermal cells using an MTS assay, anchorage-independent cell transformation assay and western blotting. Our results showed that MARC and MPML significantly suppressed neoplastic cell transformation by inhibiting the kinase activity of the EGF receptor (EGFR). The activation of EGFR by EGF was suppressed by MARC and MPML treatment in EGFR(+/+) cells, but not in EGFR(-/-) cells. In addition, MARC and MPML inhibited EGF-induced cell proliferation in EGFR-expressing murine embryonic fibroblasts (EGFR(+/+)). These results strongly indicate that EGFR targeting by MARC and MPML may be a good strategy for chemopreventive or chemotherapeutic applications.