The non-apoptotic cell death known as ferroptosis has attracted much attention in cancer research during the last decade. The defining feature of ferroptosis is the iron-dependent peroxidation of phospholipids, which leads to an excessive accumulation of membrane lipid peroxides and ultimately results in the rupture of the plasma membrane. Latest discoveries of key players in the ferroptosis pathway have sparked optimism for the development of therapies that aim to boost cell death in malignant tumors. However, the intricate interplay of metabolic nodes affecting the vulnerability of cancer cells to ferroptosis is not yet fully understood.

Two articles published this year in Nature expand our understanding of ferroptosis by unveiling a regulatory step mediated by the distal cholesterol synthesis pathway and identifying the naturally occurring metabolite 7-dehydrocholesterol (7-DHC) as a ferroptosis suppressor.