Does the time we eat affect bowel cancer development?
Co-funded with:
Cancer Research Society
Cancer types:
Bowel cancer
Project period:
–
Award amount:
£264,000
Location:
Canada
Your circadian rhythm is the natural, internal pattern that your body follows in a 24-hour day. Dr Phillip Karpowicz is exploring the circadian rhythm of our gut cells and whether the timing of eating meals can play a role in keeping our cells healthy and cancer-free. He hopes to pave the way towards exciting new ways to prevent and treat bowel cancer.
Why is this research needed?
Bowel cancer is the third most common cancer worldwide and it is currently responsible for 9.3% of all cancer deaths, second only to lung cancer. Worryingly, rates of bowel cancer have recently been rising in young people. Although the disease still mostly affects older people, in a study of 50 countries worldwide 27 countries saw a rise in the rates of bowel cancer in under-50s between 2007 and 2017. More research is desperately needed to better understand what is causing this trend, so that we can also uncover new, more effective ways to prevent and treat bowel cancer.
Dr Karpowicz believes one of the causes of bowel cancer could be that changes to our lifestyle disturb the circadian rhythm of our guts – and with the support of our Curestarters he will be able to test this idea and look for clues towards new cures for this devastating disease.
This funding made my lab’s New Year! We can now get the tools to solve an interesting problem with a lot of potential. Many, many thanks for funding this work. We could not do this kind of research without your generous support!
What is the science behind this project?
Your circadian clock is an internal timer in charge of a 24-hour physiological rhythm in your body including sleep patterns, hormonal changes and eating patterns. It’s why you might feel hungry first thing in the morning and why being exposed to artificial light late at night can ruin your sleep, since this disrupts the natural cycle. And although it is known that circadian rhythms can impact cancer, it is not clear exactly how.
A recently established concept called ‘Time-Restricted Feeding’ - eating food at the optimum time for circadian rhythms - has been shown to improve different aspects of health. Dr Karpowicz had the bright idea that Time Restricted Feeding can stop tumours growing by helping our circadian clock stay regimented so that the different parts of our body all work well together.
In this exciting project, the research team will combine work with mouse models, genomics and maths to look in detail for the first time how the circadian rhythm in our gut correlates to bowel cancer development and whether Time Restricted Feeding could prevent this happening.
What difference could this project make to patients in the future?
Dr Karpowicz hopes that this project, funded with your support, will lead to innovative new ways to prevent and treat bowel cancer based on circadian-focused nutrition.
What does it mean that this project is co-funded?
Our vision of seeing a day when no life is cut short by cancer is shared by many organisations, both in the UK and around the world. To maximise our impact and bring forward more new breakthroughs we are always looking to work with other cancer research funders. Working together helps us to advance research quickly and support the best ideas. We are pleased to be partnering with Cancer Research Society on this project.
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