Lab research just published by Profs Huntly and Vassiliou, who lead our Centre's blood cancer research, suggests the diabetes drug, metformin, could prevent a type of acute myeloid leukaemia in people at high risk of the disease.
📢 A major step forward for the blood cancer community! At Blood Cancer UK, we’re proud to have funded research that shows metformin, a widely-used diabetes drug, may help prevent acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) in people with certain high-risk gene mutations. AML is an aggressive and deadly form of blood cancer. Our landmark action plan showed that survival is shockingly low with only around 20% of people surviving for five years. We now have the tools to identify who has certain DNA change that make them at higher risk - but until now, we had nothing safe and tolerable to offer them. This new study from University of Cambridge at Cambridge Stem Cell Institute published in Nature Magazine offers the possibility of a safe, targeted, and fast-trackable prevention strategy using a drug already taken by millions for diabetes. For people affected by blood cancer, this represents something we all need more of: hope. We exist to fund game-changing research like this — and we won’t stop until no one dies from blood cancer. Research like this takes collaboration. Thanks to our funding partners Cancer Research UK (CRUK), Wellcome Trust and Cancer Research UK Cambridge Centre