The CDC estimates that in 2014 29.1 million people had
diabetes, with 8.2 million people living without a diagnosis of their
condition. One of the most popular medications to help those with diabetes is
Metformin. One popular brand name of metformin is Glucophage, although it is
marketed as part of a variety of diabetes medications. It is an oral medication
given to diabetics and people that are pre-diabetic in order to help control
glucose levels and increase insulin sensitivity. Some studies in the past have
found diabetes medications can also help with other problems, such as
preventing cardiovascular disease and polycystic ovary syndrome. While
interesting these studies have limited impact on treatment options besides
diabetes.
New studies, like the one linked below, are starting to test
and see if metformin can help to treat cancer and decrease tumor growth. It has
long been known that controlling glucose levels in diabetics is key to lower the
incidence of other diseases, even some that at first do not seem related to
glucose levels. The exact mechanism of metformin is unknown, and the extent of
biochemical pathways it interacts with has been increased as more research has
been done. This has been researched since the 1950s and things are still being
discovered about the mechanisms of action exhibited in the body. One thing that
has been found is that metformin activates the AMPK pathway, leading to
increased glucose uptake in cells.
The AMPK pathway has also been linked antineoplastic
properties, since the AMPK pathway will upregulate mRNA that degrades a long
noncoding RNA called H19. H19 serves to stop methylation of some genes by
inactivating an enzyme called SAHH. With H19 knocked down by the addition of
metformin, SAHH will help a methyltransferase methylate many oncogenes, leading
to decreased growth in cancer cells. It is hypothesized that this reaction will
also serve to keep healthy cells from becoming cancerous as well.
Since metformin is near side effect free it is safe for use
by people without diabetes and is much less destructive than many current
cancer treatments. Hopefully, after further testing and better elucidation of
all of the pathways metformin interacts with, metformin can be used to create
better cancer treatments.
Want to see articles? Check it out below:
Metformin alters DNA methylation genome wide via the
H10/SAHHH axis
By: T. Zhong, Y. men, L. Lu, et al. http://www.nature.com/onc/journal/vaop/ncurrent/full/onc2016391a.html
Cellular and molecular mechanisms of metformin: an overview
By: B Viollet, B Guigas
Diabetes Stats:
I found your post very interesting. I would not have thought that diabetes medication could also be effective as a treatment for cancer. The medication metformin seems like it could be a good option for treating cancer due to its minimal side effects. It makes me wonder how many other medications have the potential to be an effective treatment for diseases that they were not originally intended to treat.
ReplyDeleteIt's crazy to me to think that so much about biochemical pathways in the human body are still unknown after all the years of research that have been done. Also, as Abby mentioned, I do find that the possibility of using metformin to treat cancer does lead to questions regarding what else it could be used for and what other drugs could be used for other purposes. Finding these things out could be a whole new avenue of research for scientists in this field.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if this would work on any type of cancer or just specific types. There really are so many different kinds of cancer that I'm not sure we'd ever be able to find one universal drug that cures it, but maybe a sort of drug "cocktail" that can be used to fight everything. Metformin seems like it could maybe be a part of that!
ReplyDeleteIt is interesting to see how a medication meant to treat one disease can be used in the treatment of another. Both of these diseases are life changing, and the fact one medicine can help with both is a great step for the medical field.
ReplyDelete" With H19 knocked down by the addition of metformin, SAHH will help a methyltransferase methylate many oncogenes..." Why would oncogenes specifically be targeted?
ReplyDelete