Lung squamous cell carcinoma exhibits a targetable glucose dependency unique among non-small cell lung cancers

Abstract

Cancer cells consume high amounts of glucose for their cellular bioenergetic and anabolic requirements, relying on glucose to fuel their growth. We recently reported that lung squamous cell carcinoma, a major subtype of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), exhibits remarkably elevated glucose transporter GLUT1 (encoded by SLC2A1) expression and glucose dependency, while another subtype of NSCLC, lung adenocarcinoma, shows significant glucose independence. Our findings highlight the metabolic heterogeneity of glucose metabolism among lung cancer subtypes, which can be exploited for targeted lung cancer therapies.