Metformin is a drug with a documented history that spans multiple centuries. Though its current incarnation does differ from is pharmacognostic origins, it is nonetheless one of the greatest examples of a wondrous plant derived medicine. Metformin is designed for the treatment of type 2 diabetes, however, a recent explosion of research has solidly supported the hypotheses that metformin may exhibit beneficial pleiotropic effects. That is to say, metformin may be, or likely is, of benefit in treating more than just type 2 diabetes. Research, including that which was lead by me in my own translational research group at the NYS Center of Excellence in Bioinformatics and Life Sciences, points to metformin providing significant benefit to cancer patients. More recently, metformin has even been the first drug to be formally investigated in an FDA approved trial for anti-aging properties. The graph below shows the publication history of metformin as indexed by PubMed.gov.

The graph shows the number of articles about metformin published each year as indexed by PubMed.gov. Click the graph to learn more about the publication history of metformin.

Metformin Topics

The History of Metformin

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How big is metformin?

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What are the doses and formulations of metformin?

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How does metformin work?

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Does metformin impact cancer risk?

The short answer – YES! How exactly metformin will affect a particular cancer patient and whether or not it should be used in all cancer patients is still a hot topic of debate in the clinical community. After all, as the graph below shows, scientists did not even begin meaningfully exploring any cancer related effects until the after the start of the 21st century.

The graph shows the number of articles about published about metformin and cancer each year as indexed by PubMed.gov. Click the graph to learn more about the publication history of metformin and cancer.

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Does metformin impact aging?

The research exploring metformin as a potential anti-aging therapy is still very much in its infancy. As you can see in the graph below the anti-aging properties of metformin are only beginning to be explored, but the results so far are intriguing!

The graph shows the number of articles about metformin and anti-aging published each year as indexed by PubMed.gov. Click the graph to learn more about the publication history of metformin as an anti-aging treatment.

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Is metformin right for my diabetes?

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What should I do if I have side effects

Metformin is currently available in the United States with a prescription and comes in several dosages and forms.

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