It’s been known for some time, as a statistical fact, that kids and young adults who eat poorly face a significantly higher risk of some cancers. Now researchers say they’ve pinpointed a mechanism that can trigger cancer in young people…
A methylglyoxal mollecule surrounded by sugar cubes…
It’s another strike against junk food. And a well-deserved one, if the team from the National University of Singapore is correct…
What they did
Prior research showed that young people who inherit a faulty copy of the cancer gene BRCA2 have a high risk of developing breast and ovarian cancer. The team wanted to nail down the relationship between BRCA2 and methylglyoxal, a common metabolite of glucose digestion.
They also wanted to know whether people who do not inherit a faulty copy of BRCA2 were at elevated risk of cancer due to the DNA-damaging action of methylglyoxal.
The team, led by Professor Ashok Venkitaraman, carried out lab experiments on cell samples from both groups.
“Cancer is caused by the interaction between our genes and factors in our environment, such as diet, exercise, and pollution,” Venkitaraman explains. “How such environmental factors increase cancer risk is not yet very clear, but it is vital to understand the connection if we are to take preventive measures that help us stay healthy longer.”
What they found
“Our research suggests that patients with high methylglyoxal levels may have higher cancer risk.” Venkitaraman says.
“We started the study aiming to understand what factors elevate risk in families susceptible to cancer, but ended up discovering a deeper mechanism linking an essential energy consumption pathway to cancer development,” study First Author, Dr Li Ren Kong adds. “These findings raise awareness of the impact of diet and weight control in the management of cancer risks.”
The takeaway
“Methylglyoxal can be easily detected by a blood test […] which could potentially be used as a marker,” Venkitaraman observes. “Furthermore, high methylglyoxal levels can usually be controlled with medicines and a good diet, creating avenues for proactive measures against the initiation of cancer.”
My take
This is really good news for women of all ages. It’s long been a mystery why so many young women develop breast and ovarian cancers. Those afflictions have traditionally been considered curses of advanced age. If there is a causal link between methylglyoxal and cancer, it’s great that it an be easily treated. All doctors need to do is go ahead and order the appropriate blood tests to head off many breast and ovarian cancers.
And let’s not underestimate the affects of a bad diet – high in excess sugar – on the overall picture. Young people who abuse junk food are, by definition, at elevated risk of methylglyoxal-mediated cancers.
~ Maggie J.