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Metformin improved survival in patients with cancer, diabetes

Source/Disclosures Source: Yin M. Oncologist. 2013;doi:10.1634/theoncologist.2013-0111. ADD TOPIC TO EMAIL ALERTS Receive an email when new articles are posted on . Please provide your email address to receive an email when new articles are posted on Subscribe ADDED TO EMAIL ALERTS You've successfully added to your alerts. You will receive an email when new content is published.



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Patients with cancer and type 2 diabetes treated with metformin experienced longer OS and cancer-specific survival than patients treated with other glucose-lowering medications, according to results of a meta-analysis.

The reduction in risk for death was significant among metformin users with pancreatic and colorectal cancers.

“Metformin can make a substantial difference in outcome for diabetic cancer patients,” researcher Ming Yin, MD, of the department of internal medicine at the Geisinger Medical Center in Danville, Pa, said in a press release.

Yin and colleagues reviewed data from 20 studies that included 13,008 patients with cancer and type 2 diabetes. Of them, 6,343 patients received metformin alone or in combination with another glucose-lowering therapy. The other 6,665 patients received other treatments.

Nineteen of the studies assessed OS, and nine assessed cancer-specific survival.

Researchers found that metformin was associated with improved OS (HR=0.66; 95% CI, 0.55-0.79) and cancer-specific survival (HR=0.62; 95% CI, 0.46-0.84) compared with non-metformin regimens.

Results of a random-effects model analysis indicated the reduction in risk for death was significant in patients with type 2 diabetes and pancreatic (HR=0.65; 95% CI, 0.49-0.86) and colorectal (HR=0.65; 95% CI, 0.56-0.77) cancers.

Patients with lung cancer (HR=0.77; 95% CI, 0.28-2.15), breast cancer (HR=0.64; 95% CI, 0.37-1.12) and prostate cancer (HR=0.66; 95% CI, 0.36-1.21) also demonstrated reduced risks for death, but the results were not statistically significant.

When researchers stratified results by country, the random-effects analysis indicated metformin was associated with a survival benefit in Asian (HR=0.49; 95% CI, 0.37-0.65) and Western countries (HR=0.73; 95% CI, 0.61-0.87).

“Our meta-analysis demonstrated that metformin could be the drug of choice in patients with cancer and concurrent type 2 diabetes if there are no contraindications because it was associated with increased OS and cancer-specific survival compared with other diabetic medications,” Yin and colleagues concluded. “Future prospective studies with larger sample sizes and alternate study design are required to confirm our findings.”

: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.