“Thomas Seyfried, Ph.D.1, a professor of biology at Boston College and a leading expert and researcher in the field of cancer metabolism and nutritional ketosis, […] is one of the pioneers in the application of nutritional ketosis for cancer; a therapy that stems from the work of Dr. Otto Warburg, who was undoubtedly one of the most brilliant biochemists of the 20th century. Dr. Otto Warburg received the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1931 for the discovery of metabolism of malignant cells. […]



cancer metabolic disease
Nucleus/mitochondria transfer experiments favor the hypothesis that cancer is a metabolic rather than a genetic disease. Seyfried et al., 2014, Carcinogenesis.





On the other hand, when they took the mitochondria from a tumor cell and moved it into a very slow-growing type of cancer cell, the cancer cells began growing very rapidly. As noted by Seyfried, “When you bundle all these experiments together, you come to the conclusion that nuclear mutations cannot be the drivers of the disease.”

If genetic mutations are not the primary cause of cancer but rather a secondary, downstream effect of dysfunctional cell respiration, why and how do mutations occur? As explained by Seyfried, once the cells’ respiration is damaged, that damage then leads to a compensatory fermentation, which requires the upregulation of oncogenes (cancer genes).


The ROS also target the actual mitochondria themselves, where respiration occurs, which brings us to a very important point. ROS are mostly generated through the coenzyme Q couple in the electron transport chain. Both glucose and fatty acids produce FADH2, which can generate ROS.

In contrast, fat-derived ketone bodies produce only NADH, which increases the redox span of the coenzyme Q couple and reduces production of ROS. Hence, ketone bodies are considered a more “clean” fuel than is either glucose or fatty acids. Today, most people are burning glucose as their primary fuel, thanks to an overabundance of sugar and processed grains in the diet and a deficiency in healthy fats.

If you have less ROS being generated in the mitochondria, you end up with less mitochondrial damage and less DNA damage. So not only is switching the fuel you’re feeding your body the key component of cancer treatment, but […] it’s the primary way that you prevent cancer from occurring in the first place. ”


Read the full story here, comprehensive of the related dietary approach to prevent and treat cancer

Read Dr. Seyfried’s landmark article