French researchers found how cyclophosphamide (the chemotherapy preparation) cooperates with gut bacteria to increase the ability of immune system to target cancer, Newsmax Health reports.

The study, published in the journal Science, notes that the mix of microbe species in the gut varies from person to person, and that the presence or absence of one or more types may have an effect on whether we develop certain diseases, such as cancer, or are able to withstand them.

More than 100,000 billion bacteria live in the human gut and collectively behave like an organ. They are crucial to health. Not only do they help to digest and break down food into essential nutrients, they also eliminate potentially toxic substances and defend against pathogens.

The French researchers from the Institut Gustave Roussy, Inserm, Institut Pasteur, and the French National Agronomic Research Institute found that cyclophosphamide's effect depends on its ability to stimulate certain gut bacteria to move into the bloodstream and lymph nodes, where they trigger new immune defenses that boost the body's ability to fight tumors.