Metformin, believed to be the most widely prescribed anti-diabetic drug in the world, is now being researched as a potent anti-cancer treatment.
A widely used diabetes medication, metformin, may inhibit or prevent the growth of cancer cells. Interest in metformin's possible cancer –fighting properties first arose in 2005, when British researchers noticed that diabetics taking the diabetes drug had a 40% lower cancer risk. Several follow-up studies made the same finding, with the risk reduction ranging from 30 to 70 percent depending on the type of cancer.
A recent study conducted at the National Cancer Institute found that mice given oral metaformin developed between 40 and 50 percent fewer tumors when exposed to a common carcinogen in cigarettes, while mice injected with the anti-diabetic medication had 72 percent fewer tumors.
Metformin (or generic metformin hydrochloride), is marketed as Glucophage. Glucophage is an oral diabetes drug used to control blood sugar (glucose) in type 2 diabetes patients who can not control their blood glucose levels with diet and exercise alone. It works by reducing the amount of glucose made by the liver, and by making it easier for glucose to enter body tissue.
Metformin appears to act against a broad spectrum of cancers. Unlike chemotherapy or radiation, metformin doesn't poison or burn cancer cells. It's believed the diabetes medication fights cancer by targeting a tumor's stem cells and preventing their regeneration in the early stages of the disease. It's been shown to activate an enzyme that inhibits a protein regulating cell growth in tumors.
"The findings represent an unexpected and exciting lead", says Dr. Michael Pollak, a Canadian professor of oncology at Montreal's McGillUniversity, "Here we have an old drug, a safe drug, that may have an unexpected use in cancer prevention and cancer treatment."
The evidence is convincing enough that researchers are recommending type 2 (non-insulin dependent) diabetes patients consider using metformin before other diabetes medication because of its additional effects.
Metformin is considered a well-tolerated drug with a long history as a diabetic medication. There were over 42 million prescriptions written for metformin and metformin XR (sustained release) the US in 2009. Unlike other diabetes drugs, it does not cause hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) if used alone, and is the only diabetes medicine known to prevent cardiovascular complications of diabetes.
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