An NHS diabetes drug costing as little as 2p per tablet could cut the risk of prostate cancer by more than a third, according to a study.
Metformin is already taken by millions to control blood sugar levels in type 2 diabetes. Now one of the biggest ever studies to investigate its anti-cancer effects has found it could also work against a disease that kills more than 12,000 men a year in the UK.
The researchers said it’s possible men most at risk of prostate cancer could in future be given metformin to protect them against it.
Dr Visalini Nair-Shalliker, a cancer researcher at the University of Sydney, said: ‘That’s the important question and one we are currently exploring.’
More than 60,000 men a year in the UK are diagnosed with prostate cancer, with cases soaring by more than 40 per cent in the past 15 years.
Metformin has been looked at as a potential treatment because studies suggest it can block the reproduction of cancer cells. The drug lowers levels of insulin, a hormone which helps malignant cells multiply.
Research found it may also help treat breast cancer and prevent certain types of leukaemia.
In the latest study, experts at the University of Sydney tracked almost 95,000 men from 2012 to 2019.
Metformin, a diabetes drug that costs as little as 2p a pill, could cut the risk of prostate cancer by more than a third, a study suggested
The Daily Mail, along with the charity Prostate Cancer UK, has long campaigned for men to be offered regular blood tests
They identified how many were diagnosed with prostate cancer and matched this against prescriptions for metformin.
The results, published in BJC Reports, showed just over 5,000 of the men developed prostate tumours.
But those taking the diabetes drug were 35 per cent less likely to have a cancer diagnosis.
Many were overweight or obese – a major risk factor for cancer. But even in slim men on metformin, the risks also fell.
Past studies on metformin’s impact on prostate tumours have focused on giving it to men who are already very sick, with limited success.
The Sydney team said their evidence suggests the drug is much more effective when given earlier – possibly before the cancer has even been spotted.
Sophie Brooks, of Cancer Research UK, said: ‘More research is needed to understand how metformin might influence prostate cancer risk but these early signs are good news.’
Simon Grieveson, of Prostate Cancer UK, said the charity is ‘supporting research into whether it can extend the lives for some patients – which would be a game-changer for many men’.