In the first, researchers have found that people with high insulin levels insulin is produced by the body to break down sugar in carbohydrates have faster-growing tumours that spread, while, in the second study, researchers have discovered that glucose, the sugar in our blood, plays a key role in the survival of cancer cells.
Although cancer specialists have known that high insulin levels contribute to the growth of tumours in women with early-stage breast cancer, researchers have discovered that excessive production of insulin the pre-diabetic stage brought on by a diet of high-sugar, processed carbohydrates from fast foods, cakes and biscuits helps cancer spread (metastasize) and makes it more likely to be lethal.
Researchers from the Galliera Hospital in Genoa made the discovery when they profiled 125 women with breast cancer that had spread. None of the women were diabetic, but nearly half were insulin-resistant normal levels of insulin weren`t breaking down the sugar in foods while 40 per cent were overweight and 16 per cent were obese.
They discovered that those with high insulin levels were more likely to have a cancer that had spread, and they also had a higher chance of dying from their cancer.
In the second study, researchers have discovered the vital role that glucose plays in helping cancer cells communicate, thrive and grow. Glucose is taken from sugars in carbohydrates and is vital for life, but excessive amounts become food for cancer cells.
Researchers at Ohio State University have found that high levels of glucose in the blood play a key role when cancer cells start to form and grow. One area for research, they suggest, could be targeting the pathways that allow glucose to feed the cells.
(Sources: Proceedings of the Advanced Breast Cancer Third International Consensus Conference, November 6, 2015; Cancer Cell, 2015; 28: 569)
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