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Diabetes drug reduced size, number of breast cancer stem cells
Jung JW. PLoS One. 2011;doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0028068.
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Metformin, a treatment for type 2 diabetes, cut the expression of the OCT4 marker in breast cancer stem cells in MCF-7 3-D mammospheres.
The drug was not associated with reduced expression in mammospheres — miniature breast tumors — treated with bisphenol A, which researchers said shows a different mechanism of action of the bisphenol A on the breast cancer stem cells’ self-renewal ability.
Researchers at Michigan State University and South Korea’s Seoul National University grew mammospheres that activated the OCT4 marker in the lab. The mammospheres were then exposed to natural estrogen and manufactured TCDD and bisphenol A, compounds known to promote tumor growth or disrupt the endocrine system.
Researchers determined that TCDD and bisphenol A were associated with dose-dependent increases in MCF-7 growth. Metformin decreased MCF-7 cell growth at concentrations of 1 mmol/L and 10 mmol/L; lower doses of metformin did not show significant decrease in cell proliferation.
“Metformin seems to dramatically affect how estrogen and endocrine-disrupting chemicals cause pre-existing breast cancers to grow,” James E. Trosko, PhD, professor in the department of pediatrics and human development at Michigan State University and a researcher of the study, said in a press release. “While future studies are needed to understand the exact molecular mechanism by which metformin works to reduce the growth of breast tumors, this study reveals the need to determine if the drug might be used as a preventive drug, and for individuals who have no indication of existing cancers.”
Earn CME this spring at the HemOnc Today Breast Cancer Review & Perspective meeting to be held March 23-24, 2012 at the Hilton San Diego Bayfront. See details at HemOncTodayBreastCancer.com.
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