Cancer
Metabolism

Metabolic Dependencies are acquired by tumors as they progress, and their nature depends on the genetic and other changes that drive tumour formation, the local microenvironment of the tumour, and environmental factors such as diet and lifestyle. Determining how cancers hijack metabolic pathways to fuel cancer progression will reveal their Achilles’ heels, leading to promising new drug targets and biomarkers. Understanding metabolic plasticity, or how cancer cells adapt their use of metabolic pathways to cope with changing and stressful conditions, holds the key to treating metastatic and drug resistant disease. We create advanced models that preserve the metabolic features of cancer by using genetic engineering and by working directly with living tumour samples obtained directly from patients. Our state-of-the-art technology for analyzing metabolism and “-omics”-based deep characterization of tumour and host cells, including at the single-cell level, unravel the metabolic dependencies and networks of cancer and make them targetable. These studies build on Canada’s first major research program dedicated to cancer metabolism, funded by the Terry Fox Research Institute since 2011 and now additionally supported by the Quebec Breast Cancer Foundation.

Declining Metabolic Health is a leading risk factor that promotes cancer development by changing the molecular and cellular landscape of adipose (fat) tissue and compromising immune system function. While common in overweight/obese individuals, these changes also occur in one in five people of normal weight. We use our advanced technology to unravel the complex relationships between diet, metabolism, and immunity, including by spatially mapping the molecular effects of diet and bodyweight on the metabolism and cellular structure of cancerous tissue. In partnership with our interdisciplinary network of collaborators, we are developing strategies based on diet and modifying the gut microbiome to halt cancer progression and optimize responses to treatment, including immunotherapy.

Understanding and exploiting the biology of adipocytes can reveal unprecedented new strategies to prevent and treat cancer. Adipocytes (fat cells) can supply nutrients and signals that support the development of many tumour types, and changes in their health and behaviour during obesity and other types of metabolic stress can also promote cancer development and progression. However, specialized thermogenic adipocytes use nutrients to generate heat, and their activation has the potential to reverse the detrimental effects of obesity and starve developing cancers of energy. The GCI is home to some of the world’s leading experts in adipocyte biology who develop and apply a wealth of genetic and analytical technology, with links to leading clinical programs in the field, to understand the biology and functions of different types of adipocytes and discover how they can be exploited to benefit cancer patients.