New Study Creates First-Ever “Atlas” Describing Link Between Fungi and 35 Types of Cancer

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In a first-of-its-kind “atlas,” researchers identified and described the links between 35 different types of cancer and their associated fungi. Though the findings, published in the science journal Cell last month, do not prove a cause-and-effect relationship between the two, they could help scientists discover more about the role fungal microorganisms play in the disease. “The existence of fungi in most human cancers is both a surprise and to be expected,” Rob Knight, the study‘s co-author and a professor in the department of pediatrics at UC San Diego School of Medicine, said in a news release. “It is surprising because we don’t know how fungi could get into tumors throughout the body,” Knight continued. “But it is also expected because it fits the pattern of healthy microbiomes throughout the body, including the gut, mouth, and skin, where bacteria and fungi interact as part of a complex community.” Dr. Ravid Straussman, another one of the study’s co-authors and a principal investigator at the Weizmann Institute of Science, added that identifying the fungi within the tumor cells “should drive us to better explore their potential effects and re-examine almost everything we know about cancer through a microbiome lens.”

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