title: Diabetes medications and cancer risk: review of the literature.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Cancer and diabetes are major public health problems for the United States and the world. Diabetes remains the leading cause of blindness, kidney failure, and nontraumatic lower limb amputation, whereas cancer continues to be a major cause of death, accounting for approximately 1 of 4 deaths in the United States. Recently, a potential link between diabetes and cancer has been suggested in the medical literature.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To review the current literature on any potential link between diabetes medications and the risk for cancer.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Increasing evidence suggests that diabetic patients are at increased risk of developing cancer. The exact mechanism for the increased cancer risk in patients with diabetes is unknown. Because of a potential correlation between diabetes and cancer, studies are emerging that evaluate the cancer risk of medications used to treat diabetes. This article reviews the current data in the literature regarding the association between the various drug classes indicated for the treatment of diabetes and cancer development or prevention.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Despite many studies showing a correlation between some medications for diabetes and the development of cancer, there is no clear evidence of a direct causation between these drugs and cancer. Therefore, providers and patients should continue to use medications to control diabetes as before, because the correlation between uncontrolled diabetes and cancer is stronger than the correlation between medications for diabetes and cancer.
authors.affiliation: Endocrinologist, Carson Tahoe Physicians Clinic, Carson City, and Adjunct Associate Professor, Endocrinology and Internal Medicine, Touro University Nevada, College of Osteopathic Medicine.
authors.forename: Quang T
authors.initials: QT
authors.lastname: Nguyen
authors.affiliation: Senior Medical Resident, Internal Medicine Program, University of Nevada, Reno.
authors.forename: Lindsay
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Sanders
authors.affiliation: Senior Medical Resident, Internal Medicine Program, University of Nevada, Reno.
authors.forename: Anu P
authors.initials: AP
authors.lastname: Michael
authors.affiliation: Senior Medical Student, University of Nevada School of Medicine, Reno.
authors.forename: Scott R
authors.initials: SR
authors.lastname: Anderson
authors.affiliation: Clinical Pharmacy Specialist, VA Sierra Nevada Health Care System, Reno.
authors.forename: Loida D
authors.initials: LD
authors.lastname: Nguyen
authors.affiliation: Sophomore Medical Student, University of Nevada School of Medicine, Reno.
authors.forename: Zackary A
authors.initials: ZA
authors.lastname: Johnson