The overuse of antibiotics may adversely affect cancer treatments, according to a study published in the journal Oncotarget.
For the study, researchers assessed how antibiotic overuse influenced the efficacy of various cancer treatments in lab animals.
Antibiotic use immediately influences our gut bacteria, rendering us resistant to certain antibiotic therapies. Antibiotics' influence on gut bacteria may also adversely affect how our body activates T cells, which are essential to some oncology therapies. Researchers found in lab animals altered intestinal microbiota reduces the ability of the chemotherapy treatment cyclophosphamide (CTX) to combat sarcoma.
"It is clear in animal models that if you wipe out the intestinal microbiota, like you do with antibiotics, it will attenuate the chemotherapy efficacy," said Gang Zhou, PhD, immunologist at the Georgia Cancer Center in Augusta and one of the study's authors. "There is also emerging clinical evidence showing that for CTX-based chemotherapy, some patients who also get antibiotics for a longer period of time, seem to have less optimal outcomes."
To learn more about the study, click here.
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