Inorganic phosphate in the development and treatment of cancer: A Janus Bifrons?

Many chronic diseases, including cancer have been proposed to be associated with high-P intakes and high-serum inorganic phosphate (Pi) concentrations. On the other hand, there is also evidence that Pi can have antiproliferative effects on some cancer cell types, depending on cell status and genetic background and achieve additive cytotoxic effects when combined with doxorubicin, illustrating its potential for clinical applications and suggesting that up-regulating Pi levels at local sites for brief times, might contribute to the development of novel and cheap modalities for therapeutic intervention in some tumors, including triple-negative breast cancer and osteosarcoma