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Diabetes pills lower the risk of breast cancer
Breast cancer is a disease that is particularly dangerous for women and often fatal. For a long time, medics have been looking for ways to treat the condition better. Now researchers have discovered that diabetes pills can potentially help lower breast cancer risk.
Apparently there is a simple and cheap way to reduce the risk of breast cancer. Researchers at the University of Copenhagen found in an investigation that diabetes pills can help reduce the risk of breast cancer. The researchers published the results of their study at the European Breast Cancer Conference in Amsterdam.
Metformin reduces chance of dense breast tissue
The researchers investigated the effects of a diabetes drug on the development of breast cancer. They found that the cheap diabetes pills actually lower the likelihood of developing breast cancer. When women take the pills on a regular basis, they have a 40 percent lower risk of developing dense breast tissue, the British newspaper "The Telegraph" quotes the doctors. This tissue is one of the biggest risk factors for the development of tumors. The study from the University of Copenhagen examined the influence of metformin. The drug was already celebrated because of its life-prolonging effect as a supposed "miracle cure". These pills for the routine treatment of diabetes have been able to surprise in previous studies already with a protective effect on heart disease and some cancers.
Injecting insulin will double the chance of dense breast tissue
The new study examined nearly 5,700 women with an average age of 56 years. All subjects had performed a mammography screening between 1993 and 2001. The investigation is the first one that has determined the effects of diabetes treatments on the density of breast tissue. Women who controlled their disease through diets or medication showed a lower density of their breasts. For example, insulin injections worked exactly the opposite. Women who inject insulin regularly have twice the frequency of breast density, which increases the likelihood of breast cancer, the Telegraph quoted researchers as saying.
High breast density complicates mammography
One in eight women develop breast cancer during their lifetime. The so-called breast density is one of the major risk factors for the disease. High density can also complicate the detection of the disease by mammography. Diabetes is associated with an increased risk of breast cancer, but the exact causes and effects are still unclear, Dr. Zorana Jovanovic Andersen from the University of Southern Denmark opposite the "Telegraph". One of the properties of cancer cells is to grow fast and uncontrollably. In addition, the cells resist the programmed cell death that occurs in non-cancerous cells, Jovanovic continues. Growth factors are crucial for the development of cancer and its progression, adds the physician to the Telegraph.
Diabetes pills reduce breast density, insulin increases breast density
We know that insulin is an important growth factor for all body tissues. It is not known exactly how it affects the development of cancer cells, but it is very plausible that insulin increases breast density, the Telegraph quotes the expert. Dr. Andersen further explains that more research is needed to investigate the links between breast density and other risk factors for the disease. In the meantime, all women are advised to take action to reduce their risk of breast cancer through simple lifestyle changes. For example, obesity should be avoided and alcohol consumption reduced. However, the current findings suggest that treatment of diabetes with diets or tablets (metformin) may reduce breast density, while insulin therapy increases breast density. However, the study was relatively small and more research is now needed to understand the actual impact of diabetes treatments on breast density and breast cancer. It is still too early to advise women to take antidiabetes medicines to protect themselves from breast cancer, the researchers explain. (As)