Metformin: The Answer to Cancer in a Flower? Current Knowledge and Future Prospects of Metformin as an Anti-Cancer Agent in Breast Cancer

<p dir="ltr">Interest has grown in studying the possible use of well-known anti-diabetic drugs as anti-cancer agents individually or in combination with, frequently used, chemotherapeutic agents and/or radiation, owing to the fact that diabetes heightens the risk, incidence, and rapi...

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Main Author: Samson Samuel (6828956) (author)
Other Authors: Elizabeth Varghese (11008845) (author), Peter Kubatka (11008854) (author), Chris Triggle (18102697) (author), Dietrich Büsselberg (11008857) (author)
Published: 2019
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author Samson Samuel (6828956)
author2 Elizabeth Varghese (11008845)
Peter Kubatka (11008854)
Chris Triggle (18102697)
Dietrich Büsselberg (11008857)
author2_role author
author
author
author
author_facet Samson Samuel (6828956)
Elizabeth Varghese (11008845)
Peter Kubatka (11008854)
Chris Triggle (18102697)
Dietrich Büsselberg (11008857)
author_role author
dc.creator.none.fl_str_mv Samson Samuel (6828956)
Elizabeth Varghese (11008845)
Peter Kubatka (11008854)
Chris Triggle (18102697)
Dietrich Büsselberg (11008857)
dc.date.none.fl_str_mv 2019-12-09T03:00:00Z
dc.identifier.none.fl_str_mv 10.3390/biom9120846
dc.relation.none.fl_str_mv https://figshare.com/articles/journal_contribution/Metformin_The_Answer_to_Cancer_in_a_Flower_Current_Knowledge_and_Future_Prospects_of_Metformin_as_an_Anti-Cancer_Agent_in_Breast_Cancer/25340389
dc.rights.none.fl_str_mv CC BY 4.0
info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
dc.subject.none.fl_str_mv Biomedical and clinical sciences
Clinical sciences
Medical biochemistry and metabolomics
Oncology and carcinogenesis
anti-cancer therapy
cancer
combination therapy
metformin
natural compounds
resistance
dc.title.none.fl_str_mv Metformin: The Answer to Cancer in a Flower? Current Knowledge and Future Prospects of Metformin as an Anti-Cancer Agent in Breast Cancer
dc.type.none.fl_str_mv Text
Journal contribution
info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion
text
contribution to journal
description <p dir="ltr">Interest has grown in studying the possible use of well-known anti-diabetic drugs as anti-cancer agents individually or in combination with, frequently used, chemotherapeutic agents and/or radiation, owing to the fact that diabetes heightens the risk, incidence, and rapid progression of cancers, including breast cancer, in an individual. In this regard, metformin (1, 1-dimethylbiguanide), well known as ‘Glucophage’ among diabetics, was reported to be cancer preventive while also being a potent anti-proliferative and anti-cancer agent. While meta-analysis studies reported a lower risk and incidence of breast cancer among diabetic individuals on a metformin treatment regimen, several in vitro, pre-clinical, and clinical studies reported the efficacy of using metformin individually as an anti-cancer/anti-tumor agent or in combination with chemotherapeutic drugs or radiation in the treatment of different forms of breast cancer. However, unanswered questions remain with regards to areas such as cancer treatment specific therapeutic dosing of metformin, specificity to cancer cells at high concentrations, resistance to metformin therapy, efficacy of combinatory therapeutic approaches, post-therapeutic relapse of the disease, and efficacy in cancer prevention in non-diabetic individuals. In the current article, we discuss the biology of metformin and its molecular mechanism of action, the existing cellular, pre-clinical, and clinical studies that have tested the anti-tumor potential of metformin as a potential anti-cancer/anti-tumor agent in breast cancer therapy, and outline the future prospects and directions for a better understanding and re-purposing of metformin as an anti-cancer drug in the treatment of breast cancer.</p><h2>Other Information</h2><p dir="ltr">Published in: Biomolecules<br>License: <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/" target="_blank">https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/</a><br>See article on publisher's website: <a href="https://dx.doi.org/10.3390/biom9120846" target="_blank">https://dx.doi.org/10.3390/biom9120846</a></p>
eu_rights_str_mv openAccess
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identifier_str_mv 10.3390/biom9120846
network_acronym_str Manara2
network_name_str Manara2
oai_identifier_str oai:figshare.com:article/25340389
publishDate 2019
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spelling Metformin: The Answer to Cancer in a Flower? Current Knowledge and Future Prospects of Metformin as an Anti-Cancer Agent in Breast CancerSamson Samuel (6828956)Elizabeth Varghese (11008845)Peter Kubatka (11008854)Chris Triggle (18102697)Dietrich Büsselberg (11008857)Biomedical and clinical sciencesClinical sciencesMedical biochemistry and metabolomicsOncology and carcinogenesisanti-cancer therapycancercombination therapymetforminnatural compoundsresistance<p dir="ltr">Interest has grown in studying the possible use of well-known anti-diabetic drugs as anti-cancer agents individually or in combination with, frequently used, chemotherapeutic agents and/or radiation, owing to the fact that diabetes heightens the risk, incidence, and rapid progression of cancers, including breast cancer, in an individual. In this regard, metformin (1, 1-dimethylbiguanide), well known as ‘Glucophage’ among diabetics, was reported to be cancer preventive while also being a potent anti-proliferative and anti-cancer agent. While meta-analysis studies reported a lower risk and incidence of breast cancer among diabetic individuals on a metformin treatment regimen, several in vitro, pre-clinical, and clinical studies reported the efficacy of using metformin individually as an anti-cancer/anti-tumor agent or in combination with chemotherapeutic drugs or radiation in the treatment of different forms of breast cancer. However, unanswered questions remain with regards to areas such as cancer treatment specific therapeutic dosing of metformin, specificity to cancer cells at high concentrations, resistance to metformin therapy, efficacy of combinatory therapeutic approaches, post-therapeutic relapse of the disease, and efficacy in cancer prevention in non-diabetic individuals. In the current article, we discuss the biology of metformin and its molecular mechanism of action, the existing cellular, pre-clinical, and clinical studies that have tested the anti-tumor potential of metformin as a potential anti-cancer/anti-tumor agent in breast cancer therapy, and outline the future prospects and directions for a better understanding and re-purposing of metformin as an anti-cancer drug in the treatment of breast cancer.</p><h2>Other Information</h2><p dir="ltr">Published in: Biomolecules<br>License: <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/" target="_blank">https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/</a><br>See article on publisher's website: <a href="https://dx.doi.org/10.3390/biom9120846" target="_blank">https://dx.doi.org/10.3390/biom9120846</a></p>2019-12-09T03:00:00ZTextJournal contributioninfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersiontextcontribution to journal10.3390/biom9120846https://figshare.com/articles/journal_contribution/Metformin_The_Answer_to_Cancer_in_a_Flower_Current_Knowledge_and_Future_Prospects_of_Metformin_as_an_Anti-Cancer_Agent_in_Breast_Cancer/25340389CC BY 4.0info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccessoai:figshare.com:article/253403892019-12-09T03:00:00Z
spellingShingle Metformin: The Answer to Cancer in a Flower? Current Knowledge and Future Prospects of Metformin as an Anti-Cancer Agent in Breast Cancer
Samson Samuel (6828956)
Biomedical and clinical sciences
Clinical sciences
Medical biochemistry and metabolomics
Oncology and carcinogenesis
anti-cancer therapy
cancer
combination therapy
metformin
natural compounds
resistance
status_str publishedVersion
title Metformin: The Answer to Cancer in a Flower? Current Knowledge and Future Prospects of Metformin as an Anti-Cancer Agent in Breast Cancer
title_full Metformin: The Answer to Cancer in a Flower? Current Knowledge and Future Prospects of Metformin as an Anti-Cancer Agent in Breast Cancer
title_fullStr Metformin: The Answer to Cancer in a Flower? Current Knowledge and Future Prospects of Metformin as an Anti-Cancer Agent in Breast Cancer
title_full_unstemmed Metformin: The Answer to Cancer in a Flower? Current Knowledge and Future Prospects of Metformin as an Anti-Cancer Agent in Breast Cancer
title_short Metformin: The Answer to Cancer in a Flower? Current Knowledge and Future Prospects of Metformin as an Anti-Cancer Agent in Breast Cancer
title_sort Metformin: The Answer to Cancer in a Flower? Current Knowledge and Future Prospects of Metformin as an Anti-Cancer Agent in Breast Cancer
topic Biomedical and clinical sciences
Clinical sciences
Medical biochemistry and metabolomics
Oncology and carcinogenesis
anti-cancer therapy
cancer
combination therapy
metformin
natural compounds
resistance