Role of Metformin in Enhancing Cancer Therapy

Abstract

Metformin is a lipophilic biguanide derivative, which is usually been considered an antidiabetic drug, many researchers have found an association between metformin and reduced risk of cancers. While, metformin acts primarily on decreasing liver glucose synthesis thus, reducing the concentration of blood glucose and affecting a variety of biological pathways, either activating AMP-kinase-dependent pathways or non-AMPK-dependent pathways like, insulin-like growth factor-1 and inflammatory pathways. Emerging evidence from large-scale observational and cohort studies suggests that metformin may be useful as an adjuvant agent, with the greatest benefits in the prevention and reduced risk of a number of cancers.  Therefore, it was necessary to clarify the real role of metformin to be vital anti-tumor therapy. In this review, we will explain in detail the relationship between metformin and its use as a promising treatment against cancer, and we will present the relevant scientific evidence that mentioned the efficacy and advantages of metformin as a future therapy in oncology.