People with advanced pancreatic cancer who followed a ketogenic diet program administered by Virta Health while receiving chemotherapy tended to live longer than those treated with chemotherapy only, according to results from a small clinical trial.
“Our randomized phase II screening trial is the first to demonstrate that the [medically supervised ketogenic diet] is feasible with an acceptable safety profile and is associated with trends in improved [survival] in patients with metastatic [pancreatic cancer] receiving chemotherapy,” the researchers wrote.
Phase 2 trial tested ketogenic diet alongside chemotherapy
The study, “A randomized phase II trial of gemcitabine, nab-paclitaxel, cisplatin with or without a medically supervised ketogenic diet for patients with metastatic pancreatic cancer,” was published in Cancer. Funding came from several organizations, including the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, John E Sabga Foundation, Purple Pansies, and the Translational Genomics Research Institute’s National Pancreatic Cancer Advisory Committee.
A ketogenic, or “keto,” diet involves eating more fat and fewer carbohydrates. This approach aims to place the body in a metabolic state called ketosis, where it burns fat for energy instead of carbohydrates. The diet was originally developed to treat some forms of epilepsy, but in recent years it has also been explored as a potential strategy for managing other diseases.
Earlier experiments in a mouse model of pancreatic cancer suggested that combining a ketogenic diet with chemotherapy could slow pancreatic tumor growth. Building on those findings, researchers at Virta and other institutions launched a Phase 2 clinical trial to test whether following a ketogenic diet during chemotherapy would be safe and feasible for people with metastatic pancreatic cancer.
In the study, 16 patients received standard chemotherapy while continuing their usual diet. Another 16 patients received the same chemotherapy while following a medically supervised ketogenic diet through Virta’s program. According to a press release, the program “includes individualized nutrition, biomarker tracking, AI tools, 1:1 coaching, and continuous medical supervision by Virta providers.”
The results showed that combining the ketogenic diet with chemotherapy was generally safe and well-tolerated. Some participants reported diet-related side effects such as fatigue, constipation, or weight loss, but these were mild and none were considered severe.
Ketogenic diet group showed longer survival times
The median progression-free survival (PFS) — the length of time patients lived without their cancer worsening — was 8.5 months among patients following the Virta ketogenic diet program, compared with 6.2 months among those eating their usual diet. Median overall survival was 13.7 months for patients on the ketogenic diet program versus 10.2 months for those on a usual diet.
The differences between the groups did not reach conventional levels of statistical significance. Still, the researchers said the study “hopefully paves the way for larger studies, which are warranted.” Larger studies generally have more power to detect statistically meaningful effects.
Sami Inkinen, CEO of Virta, said the study “offers our first indication that the Virta platform may improve outcomes in even the deadliest conditions, and will guide us as we further build our pipeline of programs and research.”
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