Metformin Use May Not Improve Pancreatic Cancer Survival

The diabetes drug metformin is being used in some cancer treatment trials, but study results show the use of metformin does not improve survival of patients with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma.

Metformin use did not improve survival of patients with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) in a retrospective cohort study, according to data presented here at the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2015, April 18-22.

“The diabetes drug metformin is being used in some cancer treatment trials based on epidemiologic studies that have reported that use of metformin reduces the risk of death from cancer,” said Roongruedee Chaiteerakij, MD, PhD, of the Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology at Mayo Clinic Cancer Center in Rochester, Minnesota. “This study highlights the importance of appropriate design of retrospective studies and the necessity of conducting prospective studies with solid rationale for determining the effect of diabetes drugs on cancer risk or death.”

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