CPT1A is a rate-limiting enzyme in fatty acid oxidation and is upregulated in high-risk breast cancer. Obesity and menopausal status’ relationship with breast cancer prognosis is well established, but its connection with fatty acid metabolism is not. We utilized RNA sequencing data in the Xena Functional Genomics Explorer, to explore CPT1A’s effect on breast cancer patients’ survival probability. Using [18F]-fluorothymidine positron emission tomography-computed tomography images from The Cancer Imaging Archive, we segmented these analyses by obesity and menopausal status. In 1214 patients, higher CPT1A expression is associated with lower breast cancer survivability. We confirmed a previously observed protective relationship between obesity and breast cancer in pre-menopausal patients and supported this data using two-sided Pearson correlations. Taken together, these analyses using open-access databases bolster the potential role of CPT1A-dependent fatty acid metabolism as a pathogenic factor in breast cancer.

Cancer cells cannot proliferate without sufficient energy to generate biomass for rapid cell division, as well as to fuel their functions at baseline. For this reason, many recent observational and interventional studies have focused on increasing energy expenditure and/or reducing energy intake during and after cancer treatment. The impact of variance in diet composition and in exercise on cancer outcomes has been detailed extensively elsewhere and is not the primary focus of this review. Instead, in this translational, narrative review we examine studies of how energy balance impacts anticancer immune activation and outcomes in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC). We discuss preclinical, clinical observational, and the few clinical interventional studies on energy balance in TNBC. We advocate for the implementation of clinical studies to examine how optimizing energy balance—through changes in diet and/or exercise—may optimize the response to immunotherapy in people with TNBC. It is our conviction that by taking a holistic approach that includes energy balance as a key factor to be considered during and after treatment, cancer care may be optimized, and the detrimental effects of cancer treatment and recovery on overall health may be minimized.

The DASH diet is a dietary pattern designed to help treat or prevent hypertension. The diet includes foods rich in potassium, calcium, and magnesium while limiting foods high in sodium, saturated fat, and added sugars. The DASH Diet's relationship with hypertension in adults is well defined, but the effect of its variance in prevalence in seniors is not. We performed a mixed-methods observational study incorporating a survey for anonymized nursing home data regarding the number of servings of various food groups provided to senior residents per day. The data were analyzed based on the Fung et al. DASH diet scoring method. We then conducted an interview with nursing home dieticians to investigate the public health effect of the DASH diet on hypertension in residents. Lastly, a content analysis was conducted of nursing home menus to bolster the data from the surveys. In a pool of 11 nursing homes, 100% of the facilities incorporated some aspect of the DASH diet and in a pool of five nursing homes, 60% achieved high adherence to the DASH diet. We confirmed a previously observed adverse relationship between red meat consumption in seniors to higher risk and poorer prognosis of hypertension. Taken together, these analyses bolster the potential role of the DASH diet as a hypertension prevention mechanism in nursing homes.