Suggest that influenza and COVID-19 may increase the risk of metastasis

2025/08/07 Galarraga Aiestaran, Ana - Elhuyar Zientzia Iturria: Elhuyar aldizkaria

• Osasuna
• Medikuntza

Researchers from the University of Colorado (USA) have shown in mice that influenza and COVID-19 viruses can increase the risk of metastasis in people who have had bile cancer. In fact, the most common cause of breast cancer death is metastasis, often of the lung. Tumor cells migrated to the lungs can remain dormant and tumor free for many years. Well, according to this study, these viruses induce an inflammatory response in the lungs that results in the activation of tumor cells. The key pathway involved in this process has also been identified: Interleukin 6-cytokine (IL-6).

Clinical data confirm the results obtained in mouse experiments. In fact, at the UK Biobank (4,837 participants with various types of cancer), they found that people who were infected with SARS-CoV-2 had almost twice as much risk of dying from cancer as those who were not infected. For its part, the company Flatiron Health, which has data on more than 36,000 women, also found that among patients with breast tumors, those who had COVID-19 were more likely to develop lung metastases (44%).

The study has been published in the open journal Nature. They warn that the results are significant. Thus, the emphasis has been on prevention and it has been recommended that people who have survived cancer take measures to prevent such infections.