![\"Healthy](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/0_JS355531615.jpg\")
Cutting down on processed and red meat and drinking less alcohol are proven ways to lower your risk of cancer(Image: Getty)<\/p>\nThe discovery, published in a new scientific study, could lead to new dietary and pharmaceutical strategies against breast and other cancers<\/p>\n
11:02, 02 Apr 2025Updated 11:03, 02 Apr 2025<\/p>\n
Cutting down on processed and red meat and drinking less alcohol are proven ways to lower your risk of cancer(Image: Getty)<\/p>\n
A balanced and healthy diet <\/a>has long been advised by medical experts in preventing specific types of cancers from developing.<\/p>\n Eating foods <\/a>high in fibre, such as wholegrains, can help reduce your risk of bowel cancer, according to Cancer Research UK.<\/p>\n The American Institute for Cancer Research also insists a diet filled with a variety of vegetables, fruits, whole grains, beans and other plant foods helps lower risk for many cancers<\/a>.<\/p>\n However, a recent study has found that, on the contrary, two popular foods actually contribute to the growth of an aggressive type of breast cancer.<\/p>\n Published on Tuesday, April 1, new research found animal products including pork and eggs specifically enhances the growth of the hard-to-treat “triple negative” breast cancer subtype, according to a preclinical study led by Weill Cornell Medicine investigators.<\/p>\n Linoleic acid, an omega-6 fatty acid found in seed oils such as soybean and safflower oil, also play a part.<\/p>\n “This discovery helps clarify the relationship between dietary fats and cancer<\/a>,” said aid study senior author Dr John Blenis.<\/p>\n “It also sheds light on how to define which patients might benefit the most from specific nutritional recommendations in a personalised manner.”<\/p>\n In a mouse model of triple-negative breast cancer, a diet high in linoleic acid enhanced tumour growth.<\/p>\n Omega-6 linoleic acid is a diet-derived nutrient<\/a> that is considered essential in mammals for supporting multiple bodily processes.<\/p>\n However, the abundance of this fat in ‘Western-style’ diets has increased significantly since the 1950s, coinciding with the increased usage of seed oils in fried and ultra-processed foods.<\/p>\n This has led to concerns that excessive omega-6 intake might be one of the explanations for rising rates of certain diseases, including breast cancers.<\/p>\n Researchers tried to clear up this confusion by initially looking at breast cancer<\/a>, which has been linked to obesity.<\/p>\n They looked at the ability of omega-6 fatty acids, particularly linoleic acid, the dominant one in the Western diet, to drive an important, nutrient-sensing growth pathway called the mTORC1 pathway.<\/p>\n A key initial finding was that linoleic acid does indeed activate mTORC1 in cell and animal models of breast cancers, but only in triple-negative subtypes.<\/p>\n Triple-negative breast cancer is an aggressive type of breast cancer where the cancer cells lack oestrogen and progesterone receptors, and they don’t overproduce the HER2 protein.<\/p>\n The scientists discovered that this subtype-specific effect occurs because the polyunsaturated fatty acid forms a complex with FABP5, which is produced at high levels in triple-negative breast tumours but not in other subtypes, leading to the assembly and activation of mTORC1, a major regulator of cell metabolism and cancer cell growth.<\/p>\n Good news, though. The findings could be a good “biomarker” to guide more personalised nutritional and therapeutic interventions for patients with triple negative breast cancer, which currently lacks any targeted therapy.<\/p>\n The same foods could also enhance the growth of some prostate cancer<\/a> subtypes, researchers added, and even in common chronic diseases such as obesity and diabetes.<\/p>\n Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today.<\/p>\n You’ll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland.<\/p>\n No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team.<\/p>\n![\"Natural](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/0_JS320424676.jpg\")
Animal products including pork and eggs “enhances the growth of the hard-to-treat ‘triple negative’ breast cancer subtype”(Image: billnoll)<\/p>\n![\"Closeup](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/0_JS246016298.jpg\")
Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women in Scotland(Image: gilaxia \/ Getty)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/0_WACOMMUNITYQR2.png\")
Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community!<\/p>\n