Obesity weakens anti-tumor immune response in lung cancer, but exercise may restore it
Obesity can weaken the immune system's tumor-killing responses in lung cancer, leading to disease progression, but a new study by experts at Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center reveals that exercise may reverse this effect.
A recent study conducted by researchers at Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center has found that obesity can weaken the immune system's response to lung cancer, but exercise may help reverse this effect. The study, published in the Annals of Surgery, involved comparing the effects of exercise on tumors and immune cells in four groups of mice with varying levels of obesity and lung cancer.
The results showed that obese mice, both healthy and with lung cancer, that exercised had fewer regulatory T cells (Tregs) and more CD8+ T cells, which are responsible for actively destroying tumors. Additionally, tumors grew more slowly in the exercising NSCLC mice. The researchers also analyzed cell samples from the lungs of 73 patients with non-small cell lung cancer and found that those who exercised contained fewer Tregs and fewer fat-enhanced myeloid cells, which can suppress the body's tumor-killing response.
The study suggests that exercise can provide a free, noninvasive adjunct to a patient's treatment regimen that has the potential to improve outcomes.
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