Study Finds That Common Sweetener Could Compromise Cancer Treatment Effectiveness

Researchers at University of Pittsburg have found that patients who consume sucralose regularly have a lower likelihood of benefiting from immunotherapy and having longer survival times. Sucralose is an artificial sweetener that is commonly used in a variety of diet products, such as Splenda. This research is the first to connect the dietary choices that people make to groundbreaking cancer treatments. 

For their study, the team obtained the dietary data of 91 patients diagnosed with advanced melanoma. They also obtained similar data from 41 patients having lung cancer. The patients whose daily intake of sucralose exceeded 0.07mg for each pound of body weight tended to respond less robustly to immunotherapy and they also survived for a shorter time without the disease progressing. 

To find out why sucralose had this effect, the team conducted lab experiments on mice. They gave some mice water that had sucralose in it. The mice with cancer responded poorly and their tumors grew bigger. The mice that received water containing sugar responded well to treatment, showing that sucralose, and not sweetness, was the problem. 

When the researchers analyzed the immune cells of the mice, they found that their T cells were less functional and exhausted. The immune cells had low supplies of energy and produced a smaller number of molecules that help in combating cancer. 

Additional tests were conducted to ascertain how the artificial sweetener affected the T cells and the team found that there was hardly any direct effect. Instead, the sucralose altered the composition of gut bacteria in ways that allowed varieties that broke down an amino acid called arginine which provides fuel to T cells. The tissue and blood of mice fed on sucralose-laced water had low arginine levels. 

Additional tests were conducted in which stool taken from mice consuming sucralose was introduced into healthy mice. These mice also responded poorly when immunotherapy was provided. This provided proof that changes to bacterial composition led to treatment resistance. 

The research team found a way through which the mice could be helped to respond to immunotherapy. They added citrulline to water and fed this combination to the mice. Citrulline is also an amino acid from which arginine is derived in the body. Mice fed on citrulline and sucralose responded well to immunotherapy. Their survival improved and the tumors shrank. 

In the same way, when bacteria was extracted from mice that benefited from immunotherapy and it was transferred into those that had a lukewarm response, the outcomes of subsequent treatment were better. 

This shows that sucralose negatively affects the ability of immunotherapy to treat cancer and it is now important to evaluate the dietary choices of patients who undergo these advanced treatments. The synthetic sweetener is common in drugs, beverages, processed foods and other items common to the modern American diet. While sucralose has been cleared as nontoxic, this research suggests that it could have far-reaching consequences to human health and a rethink of its use is warranted. 

It remains to be seen whether the results obtained in lab tests can also be obtained in clinical trials on humans. As it is, the animal model study is eye-opening and could give entities like Calidi Biotherapeutics Inc. (NYSE American: CLDI) a lot to ponder in their immunotherapy-development efforts. 

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