The lungs are particularly vulnerable to cancer metastasis, with more than half of individuals with advanced cancers developing tumors in this vital organ. Now, researchers believe they have uncovered a key reason behind this phenomenon.

A study published on January 1 in the journal Nature reveals that elevated levels of aspartate, an amino acid, may play a crucial role in enabling cancer cells to thrive in the lungs.

“We found high levels of aspartate in the lungs of mice and patients with breast cancer compared to those without cancer, suggesting that aspartate is significant in lung metastasis,” explained lead researcher Ginevra Doglioni, a doctoral student at the Flemish Institute for Biotechnology’s Center for Cancer Biology in Belgium, in a news release.

The Role of Aspartate in Cancer Aggressiveness

Researchers examined tumor cells from aggressive lung cancers and observed that aspartate, typically present in low levels in the bloodstream, was found in high concentrations in the lungs of mice with advanced breast cancer. A similar pattern was noted in human lung tumor samples.

Aspartate, an amino acid involved in protein synthesis, was discovered to activate a surface protein on cancer cells. This activation triggers a cascade of gene signaling, enhancing the cancer cells' ability to modify their environment, making it more conducive to aggressive growth.

Implications for Treatment

These findings offer hope for improved cancer management. By identifying the mechanisms that make the lungs a favorable environment for metastatic cancer, researchers believe doctors could work toward keeping lungs cancer-free, even in advanced cases.

Encouragingly, existing drugs may already target the processes that render lungs more susceptible to cancer. Senior researcher Sarah-Maria Fendt, a principal investigator at the Flemish Institute for Biotechnology, noted, “There are drugs available to target the mechanism we identified, and with further research, translating these findings into clinical practice may be possible.”

This breakthrough provides a promising avenue for therapies aimed at halting the spread of cancer to the lungs, potentially improving outcomes for patients with advanced-stage malignancies.