Could Breast Cancer Fatigue Finding Shed Light on ME/CFS?

[Cort]

"We propose that skeletal muscle fatigue is an inherent consequence of breast tumour growth, and this greater fatigue can be targeted therapeutically." Authors

J Cachexia Sarcopenia Muscle. 2018 Mar 26. doi: 10.1002/jcsm.12294. Dysregulation of metabolic-associated pathways in muscle of breast cancer patients: preclinical evaluation of interleukin-15 targeting fatigue. Bohlen J1, McLaughlin SL2, Hazard-Jenkins H3, Infante AM4, Montgomery C2, Davis M5, Pistilli EE1,2,6,7.

This study is fascinating in a number of ways. For one it examined a physiological way that cancer of the breast could cause fatigue. Consider how strange it is that a small, non metastatic tumor in a breast could somehow produce enormous fatigue across the body as often happens in breast cancer.

In this study the researchers examined the gene expression patterns in a muscle biopsy taken from breast cancer patients. (I don't know if anyone has ever looked at gene expression patterns in the muscles in ME/CFS..) They found disrupted energy production pathways (oxidative phosphorylation, mitochondrial dysfunction, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor signalling) plus issues with IL-15 signalling.

Then they examined a mouse model of breast cancer and found that mice with high levels of expression of IL-15 had reduced fatigue. In breast cancer IL-15 may be able to reduce muscle fatigue (and how nice that would be...)

ME/CFS

If IL-15 causes muscle fatigue in breast cancer could it be causing it in ME/CFS? Klimas found reductions in IL-15 in ME/CFS in one study. Another study suggested that IL-15 was one of four key cytokines in women with GWS and/or ME/CFS. Younger's preliminary study found a relationship between increased IL-15 and symptoms in GWS.

Cancer fatigue researchers are another group of researchers our research community should be interacting with and doing studies with. The IACFS/ME should have a collaboration team that seeks to build networks between ME/CFS research and people outside the field and they should invite a cancer fatigue researcher to speak at the IACFS/ME conference.

 

[Rossy191276]

Hi @Cort

Are you saying Il-15 increases or decreases fatigue.. from reading your post it seems you have said that it decreases fatigue in cancer in the first paragraph but then said it increases it in the 2nd para...

Cheers

 

[Cort]

Hi @Cort

Are you saying Il-15 increases or decreases fatigue.. from reading your post it seems you have said that it decreases fatigue in cancer in the first paragraph but then said it increases it in the 2nd para...

Cheers

It's a mixture....In the breast cancer model high IL-15 is associated with decreased muscle fatigue but in Younger's GWS study high IL-15 was associated with increased pain and fatigue. On the other hand Klimas found reduced IL-15 in ME/CFS. Il-15 seems to be associated with fatigue but in different ways in different sets of patients...

So much for clarity! But if IL-15 turns out to be a fundamental regulator of muscle fatigue it's possible it could have different effects in different contexts.

 

[Learner1]

The suggestion to have a cancer fatigue researcher at an ME/CFS conference should go both ways, that is, ME/CFS researchers should be asked to speak at cancer conferences.

My ME/CFS seems to have been triggered by my treatment for stage 3 cancer, likely the carboplatin/paclitaxel chemotherapy.

My immune system became dysfunctional and I had 7 chronic infections, including EBV rise up. This is known to happen in cancer transplant patients, yet I couldn't get anyone in the cancer community to take an interest, even though EBV is known to cause blood cancers and I have a family history with both parents having leukemia and lymphoma. (Of course, they'll be all over helping me if I get one of these cancers.)

The behavior of the immune system is definitely a factor in cancer and in ME/CFS. Mitochondrial structure and function seems to be a part of both as well. And oxidative stress in ME/CFS can lead to epigenetic changes leading to cancer - mistakes in copying DNA.

To me, it seems that ME/CFS research should somehow be connected to the vast cancer research medical complex. Die of the immune system and metabolic insights the cancer researchers have could be very useful if applied to ME/CFS.

 

[Cort]

The suggestion to have a cancer fatigue researcher at an ME/CFS conference should go both ways, that is, ME/CFS researchers should be asked to speak at cancer conferences.

My ME/CFS seems to have been triggered by my treatment for stage 3 cancer, likely the carboplatin/paclitaxel chemotherapy.

My immune system became dysfunctional and I had 7 chronic infections, including EBV rise up. This is known to happen in cancer transplant patients, yet I couldn't get anyone in the cancer community to take an interest, even though EBV is known to cause blood cancers and I have a family history with both parents having leukemia and lymphoma. (Of course, they'll be all over helping me if I get one of these cancers.)

The behavior of the immune system is definitely a factor in cancer and in ME/CFS. Mitochondrial structure and function seems to be a part of both as well. And oxidative stress in ME/CFS can lead to epigenetic changes leading to cancer - mistakes in copying DNA.

To me, it seems that ME/CFS research should somehow be connected to the vast cancer research medical complex. Die of the immune system and metabolic insights the cancer researchers have could be very useful if applied to ME/CFS.

Good point. We have so much to share with them.

For some reason the medical community just doesn't pay much attention to the lingering effects of infection that pretty commonly occur. Definitely a blind spot for the medical community.