Nutrition, immunity, and cancers

Abstract

Changes in immunologic pathways play a leading role in all stages of cancer. Proper immune function also associates with quantitative and qualitative aspects of nutrition [1, 2]. Therefore, overnutrition and imbalanced nutrition may affect development, progression, and therapeutic response of cancer [2]. Pro-inflammatory cytokines such as tumor necrosis factor (TNF), interferon-γ (IFN-γ), and interleukins 1 and 6 (IL-1 and IL-6) are important mediators of cancer complications such as cachexia [3]. A tumor can trigger the release of cytokines such as IL-6 [4], which is associated with an increase in lipolysis and proteolysis, which in turn affect the appetite and host neuroendocrine axis and induce anorexia and cachexia [4, 5]. Several neuropeptides such as neuropeptide Y (NPY) and adipokines such as leptin have been implicated in the pathogenesis of cancer cachexia syndrome [5, 6]. Thus, an imbalance of cytokine production, and neuropeptide and adipokine dysfunction as well as changes in microbiota (particularly in GI in the consequence of cancer and tumor suppressive agents) may be a major cause of the nutritional consequences of cancer.