A new study suggests that the keto diet, which is low in carbohydrates and protein and high in fat, helps kill cells when combined with triple drug therapy and prevent pancreatic cancer. The results of the study are published in the journal Med.
In laboratory experiments, the ketogenic diet decreased glucose (sugar) furm, suggesting that the diet helped starve the cancer. Additionally, this diet raises ketone bodies produced by the liver, which puts extra stress on the body against cancer cells. .
By destabilizing cancer cells, the ketogenic diet created a microenvironment in which the triple drug therapy designed by TGen — a combination of gemcitabine, nab-paclitaxel and cisplatin — was most effective in killing off the tumour, according to the study.
In addition, the ketogenic diet has been shown to have a positive effect on antitumor immunity by stimulating pro-inflammatory tumor gene expression, which further weakens cancer.
To test these laboratory findings, the researchers began a clinical trial of up to 40 patients at five US centers. The clinical trial tested whether adding a ketogenic diet to triple drug therapy would increase overall survival in patients with pancreatic cancer.
This clinical trial began in late 2020 and was expected to continue accumulating for patients through June 2023.
Patients will be randomly assigned to either receive the triple drug regimen while on a standard diet, while the other half will receive a ketogenic diet and triple drug therapy. The nutritional aspects of the study are carefully monitored.
