Cancer Salt Nostalgia

High-salt (sodium chloride) diets have been strongly associated with disease states and poor health outcomes. Traditionally, the impact of salt intake is primarily studied in cardiovascular diseases, hypertension and renal diseases; however, recently there has been increasing evidence demonstrating the role of salt in autoimmune diseases. Salt has been shown to modulate the inflammatory activation of immune cells leading to chronic inflammation-related ailments. To date, there is minimal evidence showing a direct correlation of salt with cancer incidence and/or cancer-related adverse clinical outcomes. In this review article, we will discuss the recent understanding of the molecular role of salt, and elucidate the apparent double-edged sword nature of the relationship between salt and cancer progression.

Automated summary

High-salt diets are closely associated with disease states and poor health outcomes, impacting not only cardiovascular diseases, hypertension, and renal diseases, but also autoimmune diseases. Salt has been shown to modulate inflammatory activation of immune cells, leading to chronic inflammation-related diseases, with minimal evidence of direct correlation with cancer incidence and adverse clinical outcomes.