WCM-Q research explores the link between diabetes and breast cancer

Researchers at Weill Cornell Medicine-Qatar (WCM-Q) explored the links between type 2 diabetes and breast cancer in a new article published in Cancer Treatment Reviews, a leading scientific journal.

The researchers, led by Dr. Dietrich Büsselberg, conducted a comprehensive review of more than 200 existing diabetes and breast cancer studies, concluding that women with diabetes appear not only to have an increased risk of developing breast cancer. breast, but also diabetes promotes the progression of breast cancer and can have a negative impact on the effectiveness of cancer treatments.

The paper, titled "Challenges and Opportunities in the Treatment of Diabetes-Related Breast Cancer", also concluded that diabetes management and cancer treatment using a combination of antidiabetic and anti-cancer drugs should be more effective in the treatment of diabetes. diabetes. associated cancers.

The World Health Organization estimates that the number of people with type 2 diabetes worldwide has risen from 108 million in 1980 to 422 million in 2014. The disease is characterized by increased resistance from the disease. organism with the effects of insulin, a hormone produced by beta cells. pancreas that keeps blood sugar under control. It is well known that hyperglycemia can cause damage to the heart, nerves, kidneys and eyes, but the link between diabetes and cancer, even if it is obvious, is less well understood.

Dr. Büsselberg, a professor of physiology and biophysics at WCM-Q, said: "Much research has been published on type 2 diabetes and breast cancer separately, but not so much about the links that bind them together. As a result, we decided to combine research on both diseases in a journal to improve our understanding of their interactions. We believe this review indicates that there is indeed a direct link between diabetes and the increased risk of breast cancer, its progression, metastases and relapses. A better understanding of this link will be extremely beneficial for patients, hopefully improving the survival rates and quality of life of those affected. "

The study explains that as diabetes progresses, the body's metabolism undergoes fundamental changes, with high levels of lipids (fats), insulin, and glucose in the blood. These metabolic changes disrupt and alter the normal functions of cells, resulting in damage to DNA and the cell's own structures, uncontrolled cell proliferation and the inhibition of a process called apoptosis, a normal form programmed cell death development and cell renewal. The inhibition of apoptosis in breast cancer cells serves to initiate or promote the growth of breast tumors.

Samson Mathews Samuel, the first author of the new journal, said, "With diabetes, a" metabolic reprogramming "is taking place, which changes the way the cell works to try to cope with abnormal levels of lipids, blood pressure, and weight loss. insulin and glucose in circulation. This reprogramming modifies the very complex processes of cell signaling in normal breast cells, and this disruption of normal cell function may contribute to the incidence, progression, and aggressiveness of breast cancer. In simple terms, diabetes disrupts normal cell function and makes cancer more likely. "

The study also discusses the effects of diabetes therapies on cancer risk, concluding that drugs that target high blood glucose levels seem to induce cell death in cancer cells. Although insulin therapy appears to increase the risk of breast cancer and promote breast cancer progression, medications that increase the body's sensitivity to insulin, such as widely prescribed metformin, have significant anticancer potential.

Dr. Büsselberg said: "Studies have shown that metformin, the most widely prescribed oral diabetes medicine, decreases the occurrence of cancers in diabetic patients and may also increase the effectiveness of anticancer drugs in patients with diabetes. cancer patients. More research is now needed to determine the link between diabetes and breast cancer and to make the best use of antidiabetic and anticancer drugs to improve outcomes for patients. "

The study was also conducted by Elizabeth Varghese, Senior Research Specialist, and Sharon Varghese, Research Specialist, both of WCM-Q. The work was funded by an interim funding grant (November 2017 – present) awarded to Dr. Büsselberg through the Weill Cornell Medicine-Qatar PRMB program, a program funded by the Qatar Foundation.