A new study has shed light on how breast cancer tumors may exploit nearby fat cells for energy, offering a potential explanation for why obesity is linked to worse cancer outcomes.
Researchers at the University of California, San Francisco, reported in Nature Communications that certain breast tumors, particularly triple-negative breast cancer, can tap into neighboring fat cells by extending straw-like structures known as gap junctions. These structures allow tumors to siphon lipids — fatty compounds such as cholesterol that the body normally uses for energy storage.
Triple-negative breast cancer represents about 15% of breast cancer cases. It disproportionately affects younger women and Black women and is associated with higher recurrence rates and lower survival.
“If we can block tumors from tunneling into fat cells without harming patients, we may have a path to treating these deadly cancers,” said lead author Jeremy Williams, a postdoctoral scholar at UCSF.
In laboratory tests using human breast cancer tissue, researchers observed that fat cells located near tumors were more depleted of lipids than those further away. When they genetically altered tumor cells to prevent gap junction formation, tumor growth stopped in both human tissue samples and mouse models.
“Knocking out a single gene impaired the formation and progression of the tumor,” Williams noted.
The findings build on earlier evidence that aggressive tumors burn fatty acids for energy. Several drugs that inhibit gap junctions are already in early-stage clinical trials for other purposes, raising the possibility that they could be repurposed for cancer therapy.
Experts say the research offers the first direct evidence of how fat cells may feed cancer growth. “It suggests a potential treatment pathway for aggressive cancers that currently lack effective options,” said Dr. Julia McGuinness, a breast cancer specialist at Columbia University.
McGuinness added that the findings also underscore the importance of maintaining a healthy weight, as obesity has been linked to worse outcomes across all types of breast cancer.
Dr. Justin Balko, a cancer researcher at Vanderbilt University, called the study a breakthrough in understanding how cancer sustains itself. However, he cautioned that more research is needed to determine how significant this mechanism is in human patients. “It makes a lot of sense,” Balko said, “but we don’t yet know the full picture.”
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