After restricting the caloric intake for two days of laboratory mice (and, later, even cells in vitro), the researchers noted that the healthy cells were using all available energies for survival, thus becoming more resistant to chemotherapy than cancerous ones. According to the researchers, this is because the cells hungry enter into a quiescent state, called 'maintenance', which is characterized by extreme resistance to stress, and can survive waiting for the end of the lean period. The cancer cells instead, by their nature do not appear to halt the activities and growth, thus spending energy. Fasting animals seem to respond well to treatment, without pain or stress, while guinea pigs that had not been on a diet have died or have shown weight loss and energy loss.

The new approach has been derived from recent studies and now attracts the attention of physicians, in the hope that we can arrive at new approaches that allow higher doses of chemotherapy without side effects on the patient.

Tags: health news, cancer, chemotherapy, treatment