Dual Inhibition of MEK and PI3K/Akt Rescues Cancer Cachexia through both Tumor-Extrinsic and -Intrinsic Activities

Involuntary weight loss, a part of the cachexia syndrome, is a debilitating comorbidity of cancer and currently has no treatment options. Results from a recent clinical trial at our institution showed that biliary tract cancer patients treated with a MEK inhibitor exhibited poor tumor responses but surprisingly gained weight and increased their skeletal muscle mass. This implied that MEK inhibition might be anticachectic. To test this potential...