Cited by 188Adipokines, Inflammation, and Metabolic DiseasesCancer Risks and FactorsCancer, Lipids, and Metabolism

Contribution of adipose tissue to development of cancer

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Cozzo, Alyssa J., Fuller, Ashley M., Makowski, Liza·2017·Comprehensive Physiology

Abstract

Solid tumor growth and metastasis require the interaction of tumor cells with the surrounding tissue, leading to a view of tumors as tissue‐level phenomena rather than exclusively cell‐intrinsic anomalies. Due to the ubiquitous nature of adipose tissue, many types of solid tumors grow in proximate or direct contact with adipocytes and adipose‐associated stromal and vascular components, such as fibroblasts and other connective tissue cells, stem and progenitor cells, endothelial cells, innate and adaptive immune cells, and extracellular signaling and matrix components. Excess adiposity in obesity both increases risk of cancer development and negatively influences prognosis in several cancer types, in part due to interaction with adipose tissue cell populations. Herein, we review the cellular and noncellular constituents of the adipose “organ,” and discuss the mechanisms by which these varied microenvironmental components contribute to tumor development, with special emphasis on obesity. Due to the prevalence of breast and prostate cancers in the United States, their close anatomical proximity to adipose tissue depots, and their complex epidemiologic associations with obesity, we particularly highlight research addressing the contribution of adipose tissue to the initiation and progression of these cancer types. Obesity dramatically modifies the adipose tissue microenvironment in numerous ways, including induction of fibrosis and angiogenesis, increased stem cell abundance, and expansion of proinflammatory immune cells. As many of these changes also resemble shifts observed within the tumor microenvironment, proximity to adipose tissue may present a hospitable environment to developing tumors, providing a critical link between adiposity and tumorigenesis. © 2018 American Physiological Society. Compr Physiol 8:237‐282, 2018.

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  • Variably increased risk has been reported for cancers of the postmenopausal breast, endometrium, ovary, gall bladder, stomach, esophagus, kidney, thyroid (papillary, follicular, and anaplastic but not medullary), colon, bladder, and pancreas.

    “Variably increased risk has been reported for cancers of the breast (postmenopausal) endometrium ovary gall bladder, stomach and esophagus, kidney, thyroid (papillary, follicular, and anaplastic but not medullary), colon, bladder, and pancreas.1733,1734,1739–1752”

    From American Association of Clinical Endocrinology Clinical Practice Guideline: Developing a Diabetes Mellitus Comprehensive Care Plan-2022 Update. (2022) · cites this paper as [1745]

    The obesity-cancer link section (page unavailable) reports an association between obesity and increased risk of developing colorectal, postmenopausal breast, endometrial, kidney, esophageal, gallbladder, pancreatic, and thyroid cancers. It does not substantiate the sentence’s additional ovarian, stomach, or bladder cancers, or its specific thyroid-subtype distinction. (LLM, conf=0.88)

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  1. [254]Miyazawa-Hoshimoto S Takahashi K Bujo H Hashimoto N Saito Y Elevated serum vascular endothelial growth factor is associated with visceral fat accumulation in human obese subjects Diabetologia 46 1483 1488 2003 14534780

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Authors
Cozzo, A. J., Fuller, A. M., & Makowski, L.
Affiliations
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (US)
Corresponding author
Makowski, Liza
Venue
Comprehensive Physiology
Publisher
Wiley
Published
2017-12-12
Volume
8
Issue
1
Pages
237-282
ISSN
2040-4603 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W2890653858
Cited by
188
References
475
Citations by year
2026: 2 · 2025: 9 · 2024: 27 · 2023: 19 · 2022: 30 · 2021: 28 · 2020: 39 · 2019: 25 · 2018: 9
Type
other
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Comprehensive physiology (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
Funders
  • National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (T32HL069768)
  • National Cancer Institute (R21CA180134)
  • National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (P30DK056350)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Epidemiology › Adipokines, Inflammation, and Metabolic Diseases
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Oncology › Cancer Risks and Factors
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Cancer Research › Cancer, Lipids, and Metabolism
Keywords
adipose tissue, obesity, carcinogenesis, tumor microenvironment, adipose tissue microenvironment, breast cancer, prostate cancer, adipose tissue fibrosis, angiogenesis, adipose-derived stem cells, adipocytes
MeSH terms
Adipose Tissue, Breast Neoplasms, Cell Transformation, Neoplastic, Humans, Neoplasms, Obesity, Tumor Microenvironment

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