Abstract

In light of the mitochondrial metabolic theory, cancer could be considered a metabolic disease. It has been suggested that cancer metabolic therapies, including ketogenic diets (KD) may be useful to exploit differences in metabolism from non-neoplastic cells. In this systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) we aimed to investigate the efficacy of KD as an adjuvant therapy in the treatment of cancer compared to a traditional non-ketogenic diet. Methods: In this study, databases such as MEDLINE/PubMed, Web of Science, SCOPUS, EMBASE, and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials were searched. Only RCTs that involved cancer participants that were assigned to dietary interventions including a KD group and a control group (any non-ketogenic dietary intervention) were selected. Two reviewers independently extracted the data, and the meta-analysis was performed using a fixed effects model or random effects model depending on the I2 value or p-value.