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  • RESEARCH HIGHLIGHT

Triggering ferroptosis to tackle cancer

By
  1. Sarah Crunkhorn

Ferroptosis is a form of cell death driven by unrestricted peroxidation of polyunsaturated fatty acid-containing phospholipids (PUFA-PL) in cellular membranes. Accumulating evidence indicates that cancer cells are susceptible to ferroptosis, but the mechanisms underlying ferroptosis vulnerability are poorly defined. Two papers in Nature now report that inhibition of the ferroptosis suppressor FSP1 effectively blocks growth of lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) and metastasizing melanoma in mice.

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Nature Reviews Drug Discovery 25, 18 (2026)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41573-025-00189-6

References

  1. Wu, K. et al. Targeting FSP1 triggers ferroptosis in lung cancer. Nature https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-025-09710-8 (2025)

  2. Palma, M. et al. Lymph node environment drives FSP1 targetability in metastasizing melanoma. Nature https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-025-09709-1 (2025)

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