Prostate Cancer and Diet: What are the Odds?
High fat diet and obesity promote the progression of
prostate cancer by amplifying the activity of the cancer genes. A new study
found that metabolites from high-fat diet collaborate with the cancer-driving
gene MYC to reprogram prostate cancer cells into growing faster. This discovery
shows the direct link between obesity and prostate cancer. A study carried out
to clarify
the relationship between prostate cancer and obesity
revealed that:
·
Fat increases the activity of the cancer-driving
gene known as MYC.
·
Tumors feed on the body’s resources including
energy and oxygen, vitamins and nutrients and the vital space as they grow to
cause lethal damage.
·
Having a high-fat diet provides cancer cells with
more resources they need. Obesity and high-fat diet increase the risk for
advanced and lethal prostate cancer, especially in African American men.
To have a better understanding of how a high-fat diet and
obesity promote the progression of cancer, a study was conducted. Every cell in
the body has the same DNA, but not all genes are expressed at all times.
Epigenetics is a process that programs cells to express some genes and not
others. It regulates the structure of DNA to prevent or allow access to genes
for expression. That’s why there are cells with distinct and specialized
functions like skin cells, immune cells, brain cells, etc. Epigenetics is
important in cancer; they reprogram cancer cells to express genes that allow
continued growth and survival instead of sticking to the controlled growth
program of the normal cells.
·
Epigenetics is involved in the link between
prostate cancer and obesity.
·
There’s a link between epigenetics and
metabolism, where metabolites are important ingredients that are required for
epigenetic reprogramming.
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