Science Magazine: Special diets might boost the power of drugs to vanquish cancers

Vicky Makker, an oncologist in New York City, is leading research on the use of diet to increase the effectiveness of a cancer drug. The drug, a phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (Pl3K) inhibitor, blocks a growth-promoting pathway. Researchers are putting patients on a ketogenic diet in hopes that it will make tumors more susceptible to the drug and lower resistance. In the past, there has been suggestions that fasting diets, calorie-deficit, and removing certain dietary nutrients, such as essential amino acids, may increase the effect of chemotherapy and radiation treatment. Read the full article by Jocelyn Kaiser of Science Magazine here.