Stool Microbiome Features and Weight Change Response to Treatment for cancer cachexia

Area of Science:

• Oncology
• Microbiome Research
• Nutritional Science

Background:

• Cancer cachexia causes significant weight and muscle loss, impacting patient outcomes.
• Nutritional interventions improve outcomes but show variable patient responses.
• Predicting individual responses to dietary changes in cancer cachexia remains challenging.

Purpose of the Study:

• Identify gut microbiome features as predictive biomarkers for nutritional intervention response in cancer cachexia.
• Investigate associations between baseline microbiome profiles and weight changes.
• Explore microbiome alterations following dietary interventions.

Main Methods:

• Recruited patients from a cancer cachexia clinic (CNR-JGH).
• Provided individualized nutritional counseling to increase energy and protein intake.
• Analyzed stool DNA for gut microbiome profiles (diversity, genus abundance) at baseline and post-intervention.

Main Results:

• Higher baseline alpha-diversity and Lachnospira genus abundance predicted a positive weight response (weight maintenance/gain).
• Weight-losing patients exhibited lower alpha-diversity and increased microbial instability post-intervention.
• Predictors for poor response (weight loss) were not identified.

Conclusions:

• Gut microbiome features correlate with dietary intervention response in cancer cachexia.
• Lachnospira abundance may predict positive weight change, aiding multimodal care.
• Maintaining gut microbiome diversity and stability could enhance nutritional intervention effectiveness.