Cancer-Associated Cachexia
A special issue of Cancers (ISSN 2072-6694).
Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2021) | Viewed by 44214
Special Issue Editors
Interests: cachexia; Cancer Metabolism; cancer-related death
2. Department of Pathology and Cell Biology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY 10032, USA
Interests: cancer Cachexia; drug resistance; cancer metastasis; metastatic breast cancer and lung cancer
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues
Many types of cancer are associated with cachexia, a multifactorial wasting disease that weakens the body, perturbs quality of life, and minimizes the success of underlying tumor treatment and, ultimately, survival. Body wasting is largely attributed to a loss of skeletal muscle and adipose tissue mass, but cachexia is a multiorgan disease that also affects other tissues including the liver, heart, brain, and gastrointestinal tract as well as the immune system. This occurs as a result of anorexia and metabolic malfunction induced either directly or indirectly by the tumor. It has been estimated that 80% of metastatic cancers exhibit features of cachexia, with muscle mass and/or function loss. The highest incidences of cachexia have been observed in patients with pancreatic, gastrointestinal, and lung cancers.
In addition to pro-inflammatory cytokines (most prominently, TNFα and IL6, which are well-established cachexia-inducing factors), more recent studies have identified novel mediators of cachexia which are secreted either directly by the tumor or mediate wasting through interorgan crosstalk. Among these are members of the TGFβ family (myostatin, activin A), IFNγ, LIF, ZAG, and many more new candidates linked to metabolism. Increased lipolysis in adipose tissue and proteolysis in skeletal muscle account for the majority of the weight loss, but the importance of liver acute-phase response, cardiac atrophy, and metaflammation is becoming increasingly evident.
Despite our growing knowledge of the causes and consequences of cachexia in recent years, we are still lacking efficient treatment strategies to counteract wasting.
Overall, we still need to deepen our understanding of the molecular principles of energy loss in cachexia as well as the factors promoting body wasting in the context of cancer progression and metabolism. Likewise, identifying specific biomarkers which enable us to detect and treat cachexia at an early stage would greatly improve our chances of efficiently treating this disease. This Special Issue “Cancer-Associated Cachexia” is therefore dedicated to highlighting recent advances in understanding and targeting wasting mechanisms in cancer.
Dr. Maria Rohm
Dr. Swarnali Acharyya
Dr. Pauline Morigny
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
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Keywords
- Cachexia
- Wasting
- Energy metabolism
- Tumor-secreted factors
- Adipose tissue
- Skeletal muscle
- Novel targets
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