Key pointsPreclinical research suggests fructose may influence how certain cancer cells spread.Scientists found that fructose may affect cancer through multiple pathways, including changes within the tumor environment and its processing by the liver.Experts recommend limiting added sugars and sugar-sweetened beverages rather than avoiding naturally occurring fructose in nutrient-rich foods like fruit and vegetables.Fructose occurs naturally in fruit, vegetables, and honey, and it’s also a key component of high-fructose corn syrup, a common sweetener in soda and other packaged foods. Now, new research is raising questions about what this familiar sugar could mean for cancer progression.In a preclinical study published in Nature Aging, scientists found that fructose produced by chemotherapy-damaged cancer cells appeared to help nearby ovarian cancer cells break away and spread. The findings don’t mean that eating fruit — or fructose itself — causes cancer, but researchers say they could offer new insight into how nutrients influence tumor behavior.This isn’t the first study to suggest a connection between fructose and cancer growth. A 2026 review linked fructose to metabolic syndrome. A 2024 study published in Nature, fructose was linked to increased growth of melanoma, breast, and cervical cancer tumors in animal models. A 2021 study in Cancer Research also found that fructose promoted prostate cancer growth and progression in laboratory and animal models. What research suggests about fructose and cancer progressionNearly 40% of Americans will be diagnosed with cancer at some point in their lives, underscoring the importance of research into factors that may influence cancer development and progression.For the study, researchers analyzed ovarian cancer cells, mouse models, and human tumor and blood samples. The findings are preclinical, meaning the results haven’t yet been confirmed in humans, but they raise questions about how diet and specific nutrients may affect cancer progression.Related: Fruit Juice vs. Fruit: What New Fructose Research Says About Diabetes RiskThe new research builds on previous findings that some cancer cells exposed to chemotherapy can enter a senescent state, in which they stop dividing but release substances that may contribute to cancer progression. For example, platinum-based chemotherapy is commonly used to treat ovarian cancer and can be effective at killing cancer cells, but the disease can still return and spread. In this study, researchers found that some chemotherapy-damaged, senescent cancer cells (sometimes called “zombie” cells) produce fructose, a simple sugar. That fructose can alter the behavior of nearby cancer cells, appearing to help them break away and spread to other parts of the body. In mouse models, researchers also found that high amounts of dietary fructose promoted cancer spread even without prior chemotherapy exposure.What is fructose and where is it found?Fructose is a type of simple sugar known as a monosaccharide. It’s commonly referred to as “fruit sugar” because it occurs naturally in many fruits and plant foods like honey, sugar beets, and some vegetables like zucchini and asparagus. Fructose is also added to some foods, usually in the form of high-fructose corn syrup. Many sodas, commercially processed baked goods, and candies are major sources of fructose. How fructose may influence cancer growth and spreadFructose can make cancer cells less adhesive, allowing them to break off from a mass and travel to other parts of the body. Katherine M. Aird, PhD, study coauthor, professor, and co-leader of the Molecular and Cellular Oncogenesis Program at The Wistar Institute, explains how the mechanism works: Cancer cells lose cholesterol from their surface when they process fructose, she says.“This cholesterol acts like a glue that helps cancer cells stick together,” she says. “When that ‘glue’ is lost, the cells can more easily break away from the main tumor, increasing the chances that the cancer will spread throughout the body.” Related: Scientists Are Studying This Everyday Vegetable for Its Potential Role in Cancer PreventionDietary fructose may affect tumors through a different pathway. The liver can convert fructose into fats that tumors can use to grow, says Ana Gomes, PhD, study coauthor and vice chair of the Tumor Microenvironment and Metastasis Department at Moffitt Cancer Center. “The emerging picture is that fructose may be more than simply a dietary sugar that fuels cancer growth — it can also act as a metabolite within the tumor environment that influences cancer biology,” Gomes says.Taken together, the findings suggest fructose may influence cancer progression through several pathways rather than acting directly on cancer cells alone. “Nutrients can influence cancer through complex interactions among the tumor, liver, immune system, microbiome, and surrounding tissues,” says Tracy Crane, PhD, RDN, director of lifestyle medicine, prevention, and digital health at Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center. “Fructose is not acting as a simple on–off switch.”How to spot added sugar on a nutrition labelYou don’t have to scan an ingredient list for the word “fructose” to figure out how much added sugar a food contains. The Nutrition Facts label does most of the work for you.Check “Added Sugars.” It appears beneath “Total Sugars” and tells you how many grams of added sugar are in each serving.Look at the % Daily Value. The FDA considers 5% Daily Value or less per serving low in added sugar, and 20% or more high.Keep serving size in mind. If you eat or drink two servings, you’re also getting twice the amount of added sugar listed on the label.Don’t confuse total and added sugars. Total sugars include sugars that occur naturally in foods, such as those in fruit and milk, as well as sugars that have been added.Does this mean you should stop eating fructose?The findings don’t mean you need to eliminate fructose from your diet, experts say. “‘Sugar feeds cancer’ is an oversimplification that can create unnecessary fear,” Crane says. Cancer cells use glucose, the primary sugar found in the blood, for energy, but healthy cells do, too. “Eliminating dietary sugar will not selectively starve a tumor,” she says. “We do not have strong human evidence that cutting out all sugar causes a tumor to shrink or prevents recurrence.”Ketan Thanki, MD, a colorectal surgeon at the MemorialCare Todd Cancer Institute at Long Beach Medical Center in Long Beach, California, agrees. “We’re not at a point where people need to eliminate all fructose from their diets,” he says. Fruits and vegetables that naturally contain fructose can still be part of a nutritious diet.Related: This Everyday Nonalcoholic Drink Could Be Linked to Serious Liver Risk, Researchers Say“The bigger concern is added sugars, especially high-fructose corn syrup found in processed foods and sugary drinks,” Thanki says. “These sources deliver large amounts of fructose quickly and without fiber, which may affect how the body processes it.”Crane says the findings reinforce existing guidance to limit sugar-sweetened beverages and highly processed foods with large amounts of added sugar, including high-fructose corn syrup. “For now, the takeaway is to be mindful of added sugars [and] not to cut out natural, nutrient-rich foods,” Thanki says.Reviewed byLauren Manaker MS, RDN, LD, CLEC: Lauren is an award-winning registered dietitian and three-time book author, with more than 22 years in the field.Read the original article on Food & Wine
