Metformin is best known as a reliable and affordable medication for managing type 2 diabetes. But scientists are now discovering that this everyday drug may do more than just control blood sugar—it could also help the immune system fight cancer.
Researchers at the University of Helsinki have found that metformin can activate certain immune cells, making them better at spotting and attacking cancer. The findings, published in the Journal for ImmunoTherapy of Cancer, suggest that metformin could become an important part of future cancer treatments.
The research, led by scientists Rita Turpin and Juha Klefström, focused on dendritic cells. These are special immune cells that act like messengers: they collect information about threats in the body, such as cancer, and alert other immune cells to respond.
The study showed that metformin changes how these cells use energy, boosting their activity and making them more effective at identifying cancer cells as targets.
To study this in a realistic way, the researchers used a special method called patient-derived explant cultures. These are samples of living breast cancer tissue donated by patients. The samples contain both cancer cells and immune cells that have moved into the tumor.
This method lets scientists watch how drugs like metformin affect both cancer cells and immune cells in a setting that closely mimics the human body.
This approach is important because many cancer treatments damage both cancer cells and healthy immune cells. Metformin, however, seems to do the opposite: it supports immune cells, helping them fight back while remaining safe and well-tolerated.
Dr. Klefström emphasized how critical these donated tissue samples are. Without them, researchers wouldn’t be able to study the real-time interactions between cancer and the immune system. Thanks to the generosity of breast cancer patients, scientists can now explore how metformin and other common drugs might be reused to help in the fight against cancer.
This discovery is exciting because it shows that a drug already in use for diabetes—one that is affordable and widely available—might also become a powerful ally in cancer care. The study opens the door to combining metformin with other immune-boosting treatments, potentially making cancer therapy more effective and less harmful.
While more research and clinical trials are needed to confirm how metformin can be used in cancer treatment, this study adds to growing evidence that some old drugs may hold new promise. As we learn more, repurposing medications like metformin could offer patients new hope, using the body’s own immune system as a powerful weapon against cancer.
If you care about blood sugar, please read studies about why blood sugar is high in the morning, and how to cook sweet potatoes without increasing blood sugar.
For more information about brain health, please see recent studies about 9 unhealthy habits that damage your brain, and results showing this stuff in cannabis may protect aging brain, treat Alzheimer’s.
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