Sleep apnea may make lung cancer more deadly

https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2016-11/ehs-sam111716.php

Public Release: 17-Nov-2016
Sleep apnea may make lung cancer more deadly
New research in CHEST shows that a lack of oxygen during sleep helps enable the spread of cancer cells
Elsevier Health Sciences

A team of researchers from the University of Chicago and the University of Barcelona has found that intermittent hypoxia, or an irregular lack of air experienced by people with sleep apnea, can increase tumor growth by promoting the release of circulating exosomes. Their results are published in the current issue of the journal CHEST.

Obstructive sleep apnea has been associated with increased incidence of cancer and mortality. In order to better understand the connection between the two, investigators took a detailed look at lung cancer tumor cell growth in mice. Half of the mice experienced regular breathing patterns, while the other half were exposed to intermittent hypoxia (IH) to simulate sleep apnea. The team found that exosomes released in the mice exposed to IH enhanced the malignant properties of the lung cancer cells.

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Sleep apnea's variable oxygen levels cause damage that is detectable even at the tissue level. Although many other confounding factors exist, sleep apnea is shown to be an independent factor associated with adverse cancer outcomes.

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