What if the very fat found in your favorite cheeseburger and buttery mashed potatoes is secretly whispering to cancer cells, egging them on to spread throughout the body? It sounds like the plot of a medical thriller, but it’s real: palmitic acid, a saturated fat abundant in meat and dairy, can ramp up the metastatic potential of cancer cells via the fat receptor CD36. Metastasis—the insidious process where cancer spreads far and wide—is the grim reaper behind roughly 90% of cancer deaths, and despite all our high-tech treatments, halting it remains a vexing challenge. Paradoxically, some of the very therapies designed to combat cancer—chemotherapy, radiation, even surgery—might inadvertently fan the flames of metastasis. Researchers stumbled upon a “fat controller” receptor, CD36, that acts like a greasy fuel line for metastatic cancer cells, especially when palmitic acid is involved. This discovery flips the script on our understanding of cancer’s spread and prompts an urgent question: If these fat-loving cells rely so heavily on dietary lipids, could starving them of fat be the missing piece in the cancer puzzle? Let’s dive deeper and see if cutting down on certain fats might just starve metastasis before it starts. LEARN MORE
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