A common diabetes drug can reverse the side effects of a prostate cancer drug, a new study has revealed.
Hormone therapy is one of the most common and effective treatments for prostate cancer. However, this treatment may increase the risk of weight gain and cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes.
In research, when the type 2 diabetes drug metformin was used in conjunction with cancer treatment, patients’ weight gain, blood sugar and cholesterol were reduced.
Researchers in the UK examined the hormonal side effects of metformin on more than 1,800 people.
In a study lasting more than seven years, the drug was found to improve the body’s ability to use sugar and fat for energy.
Metformin reduces the body’s ability to store excess glucose by helping the body use insulin more effectively and lower blood sugar levels.
The most common treatment for prostate cancer is hormone therapy, which involves blocking the production of testosterone (which helps prostate cancer grow).
Hormone therapy cannot cure the disease, but it can prolong patients’ lives or slow the growth of tumors before they can be removed with radiotherapy or surgery.
