Researchers Map Lung Cancer Metabolic Neighborhoods

Scientists at the University of Queensland's Frazer Institute mapped cellular 'neighborhoods' in non-small cell lung carcinoma and found metabolism strongly influences immunotherapy response, the team reported in Nature Communications on Wednesday. Using machine-learning and cellular-resolution analyses, they linked higher cancer-cell glucose uptake with poorer outcomes and therapy resistance. Researchers propose testing metabolic inhibitors and patient-specific strategies to improve immunotherapy and extend the approach to other cancers.