The complex relationship between prostate cancer and obesity
Men with obesity have been associated with more aggressive forms of prostate cancer, and poorer treatment outcomes. Professor Matt Watt is researching the relationship between these diseases and how we can prevent them from progressing.
Published 15 May 2019
Previously seen as an older man’s disease, increased rates of prostate cancer in younger men has been associated with an increased incidence of obesity.
“There are a number of changes that happen in the body when you have obesity, that could lead to the progression of cancer,” says Professor Watt, Head of the Department of Physiology, School of Biomedical Sciences at the University of Melbourne.
“Essentially what we’ve found is that, unlike other cancer types, which rely heavily on glucose to fuel both their growth and their proliferation, prostate cancer cells are very highly reliant on fatty acids.”
Working with researchers at Monash University, Professor Watt’s group have shown that they can block the capacity of these prostate cells to take up fatty acids which slows their growth dramatically.
“We think this has very important implications in understanding both the progression of the disease, but also ways in which we might be able to therapeutically target prostate cancer in the future.”
Episode recorded: May 6, 2019.
Interviewer: Dr Andi Horvath.
Producer, audio engineer and editor: Chris Hatzis.
Co-producers: Silvi Vann-Wall and Dr Andi Horvath.
Banner image: Shutterstock
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