Key points<\/p>\n
Preclinical research suggests fructose may influence how certain cancer cells spread.<\/p>\n
Scientists found that fructose may affect cancer through multiple pathways, including changes within the tumor environment and its processing by the liver.<\/p>\n
Experts recommend limiting added sugars and sugar-sweetened beverages rather than avoiding naturally occurring fructose in nutrient-rich foods like fruit and vegetables.<\/p>\n
Fructose occurs naturally in fruit, vegetables, and honey, and it\u2019s 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.<\/p>\n
In a preclinical study published in Nature Aging<\/a>, scientists found that fructose produced by chemotherapy-damaged cancer cells appeared to help nearby ovarian cancer cells break away and spread. The findings don\u2019t mean that eating fruit \u2014 or fructose itself \u2014 causes cancer, but researchers say they could offer new insight into how nutrients influence tumor behavior.<\/p>\n This isn\u2019t the first study to suggest a connection between fructose and cancer growth. A 2026 review linked<\/a> fructose to metabolic syndrome. A 2024 study published in\u00a0Nature<\/a>, fructose was linked to increased growth of melanoma, breast, and cervical cancer tumors in animal models. A 2021 study in\u00a0Cancer Research<\/a>\u00a0also found that fructose promoted prostate cancer growth and progression in laboratory and animal models.\u00a0<\/p>\n What research suggests about fructose and cancer progression<\/p>\n Nearly 40% of Americans<\/a> 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.<\/p>\n For the study, researchers analyzed ovarian cancer cells, mouse models, and human tumor and blood samples. The findings are preclinical, meaning the results haven\u2019t yet been confirmed in humans, but they raise questions about how diet and specific nutrients may affect cancer progression.<\/p>\n Related: Fruit Juice vs. Fruit: What New Fructose Research Says About Diabetes Risk<\/a><\/p>\n The 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.\u00a0<\/p>\n In this study, researchers found that some chemotherapy-damaged, senescent cancer cells (sometimes called \u201czombie\u201d 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.<\/p>\n What is fructose and where is it found?<\/p>\n Fructose is a type of simple sugar known as a monosaccharide. It\u2019s commonly referred to as \u201cfruit sugar\u201d because it occurs naturally<\/a> in many fruits and plant foods like honey, sugar beets, and some vegetables like zucchini and asparagus.\u00a0<\/p>\n Fructose is also added <\/a>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.\u00a0<\/p>\n How fructose may influence cancer growth and spread<\/p>\n Fructose 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<\/a>, 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.<\/p>\n \u201cThis cholesterol acts like a glue that helps cancer cells stick together,\u201d she says. \u201cWhen that \u2018glue\u2019 is lost, the cells can more easily break away from the main tumor, increasing the chances that the cancer will spread throughout the body.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Related: Scientists Are Studying This Everyday Vegetable for Its Potential Role in Cancer Prevention<\/a><\/p>\n Dietary 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<\/a>, study coauthor and vice chair of the Tumor Microenvironment and Metastasis Department at Moffitt Cancer Center. \u201cThe emerging picture is that fructose may be more than simply a dietary sugar that fuels cancer growth \u2014 it can also act as a metabolite within the tumor environment that influences cancer biology,\u201d Gomes says.<\/p>\n Taken together, the findings suggest fructose may influence cancer progression through several pathways rather than acting directly on cancer cells alone. \u201cNutrients can influence cancer through complex interactions among the tumor, liver, immune system, microbiome, and surrounding tissues,\u201d says Tracy Crane, PhD, RDN<\/a>, director of lifestyle medicine, prevention, and digital health at Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center. \u201cFructose is not acting as a simple on\u2013off switch.\u201d<\/p>\n How to spot added sugar on a nutrition label<\/p>\n You don\u2019t have to scan an ingredient list for the word \u201cfructose\u201d to figure out how much added sugar a food contains. The Nutrition Facts label does most of the work for you.<\/p>\n Check \u201cAdded Sugars.\u201d It appears beneath \u201cTotal Sugars\u201d and tells you how many grams of added sugar are in each serving.<\/p>\n Look at the % Daily Value. The FDA considers 5% Daily Value or less per serving low in added sugar, and 20% or more high.<\/p>\n Keep serving size in mind. If you eat or drink two servings, you\u2019re also getting twice the amount of added sugar listed on the label.<\/p>\n Don\u2019t 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.<\/p>\n Does this mean you should stop eating fructose?<\/p>\n The findings don\u2019t mean you need to eliminate fructose from your diet, experts say. \u201c\u2018Sugar feeds cancer\u2019 is an oversimplification that can create unnecessary fear,\u201d Crane says. Cancer cells use glucose, the primary sugar found in the blood, for energy, but healthy cells do, too. \u201cEliminating dietary sugar will not selectively starve a tumor,\u201d she says. \u201cWe do not have strong human evidence that cutting out all sugar causes a tumor to shrink or prevents recurrence.\u201d<\/p>\n Ketan Thanki, MD<\/a>, a colorectal surgeon at the MemorialCare Todd Cancer Institute at Long Beach Medical Center in Long Beach, California, agrees. \u201cWe\u2019re not at a point where people need to eliminate all fructose from their diets,\u201d he says. Fruits and vegetables that naturally contain fructose can still be part of a nutritious diet.<\/p>\n