It’s found heavily in Western diets, and it could be leading to much higher rates of breast cancer — it’s sugar, and the sweet stuff could end up being deadly for many Americans.

A new study has found that high levels of fructose carries an increased risk of breast cancer tumors and metastasis to the lungs, according to a UPI report.

University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center researchers examined fructose, which is found in table sugar and high-fructose corn syrup, and noticed that it seemed to help tumor growth and allow those tumors to spread.

Dr. Lorenzo Cohen, who is a professor of palliative, rehabilitation, and integrative medicine at MD Anderson, said in a press release: “The current study investigated the impact of dietary sugar on mammary gland tumor development in multiple mouse models, along with mechanisms that may be involved. We determined that it was specifically fructose, in table sugar and high-fructose corn syrup, ubiquitous within our food system, which was responsible for facilitating lung metastasis and 12-HETE production in breast tumors.”‘

To make their findings researchers conducted four studies that involved mice being fed one of four diets with different levels of fructose. The study results indicated that between 50 and 58 percent of mice with a diet heavy in sucrose devleoped mammary tumors by six months of age, but just 30 percent of mice on a starch-control diet had the same.

Researchers cautioned that more studies would be needed to determine whether sugar’s effect on tumor growth is direct or indirect. Still, it’s a promising lead to understanding more about the disease.

The findings were published in the journal Cancer Research.