Illustration by Darryl Leja, National Human Genome Research Institute, National Institutes of Health
Chemotherapy doesn’t just kill cancer cells. It also affects the microbes in the digestive tract.
Researchers at UC San Francisco have discovered that some gut bacteria can reduce the side effects of these potent treatments, and that one family of cancer drugs may actually boost these protective bacteria.
The phenomenon could help physicians predict the severity of a patient’s side effects and points the way to supplements that could help those whose guts aren’t sufficiently protecting them.
“These studies emphasize the important relationship between the gut microbiome and drug toxicity,” said Peter Turnbaugh, PhD, a professor of microbiology and immunology at UCSF. “A more detailed understanding of this relationship could provide new strategies to optimize the treatment of cancer and other diseases.”
Clearing drugs from the body
Turnbaugh’s team found that colorectal cancer patients taking a class of cancer drugs known as fluoropyrimidines had much less diverse microbiomes in their digestive system. But the surviving bacteria did something amazing.