Exercise / RAS Cancer Research Results

Exercise simultaneously modulates multiple core cancer drivers:
  ↓ Insulin / IGF-1 signaling
  ↓ Chronic inflammation (IL-6, TNF-α baseline)
  ↑ Immune surveillance (NK cells, CD8⁺ T cells)
  ↑ Mitochondrial function and mitophagy
  ↓ Estrogen and androgen bioavailability
  ↑ Circadian stability
  ↓ Visceral adiposity (key endocrine organ)
No supplement or single molecule does this breadth of work.

Exercise, fasting, and diet work by changing the environment tumors depend on — not by poisoning the tumor.


Age-stratified interpretation 
1. Younger / metabolically healthy adults
-Baseline IGF-1: normal–high
-Exercise effect:
  -Systemic IGF-1 ↔ or slight ↓
  -IGF-1 signaling efficiency ↑ (better receptor sensitivity)
-Net effect:
  -Less chronic growth drive
  -Better metabolic control
➡ This is where IGF-1 ↓ papers usually come from.

2. Older adults (≈50–60+ years)
-Baseline IGF-1: low
-Exercise effect:
  -IGF-1 ↑ (restoration toward youthful range)
  -Improved GH → IGF-1 axis responsiveness
-Net effect:
  -Muscle, bone, immune maintenance
  -Reduced frailty and inflammation
➡ This is where IGF-1 ↑ papers come from.

3. Cancer relevance (critical distinction)
-Even when circulating IGF-1 increases in older exercisers:
-Tumor IGF-1 signaling still goes DOWN, because:
  -Insulin sensitivity improves
  -IGFBP balance shifts
  -Inflammation drops
  -mTOR tone is suppressed
  -AMPK tone is elevated
So:
-Host IGF-1 ↑ ≠ tumor IGF-1 signaling ↑