Type 2 diabetes, oxidative stress and cancer
Research group information
Unit and faculty
Contact information
Research group leader
- MD, PhDElina Urpilainen
Research group description
Patients with type 2 diabetes are at a greater risk of some cancer types, possible together with worse prognosis. Various types of antidiabetic medication have been reported to have different relationships to cancer prognosis. Metformin seems to reduce mortality in some forms of cancer and it has effects on cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in vitro.
The aim of our epidemiological study is to find out whether antidiabetic medication, statin or postmenopausal hormone therapy use are associated with reduced incidence and mortality in cancers. The aim of our translational study is to clarify the pathogenesis of gynecological and colorectal cancers as well as the role of oxidative stress in these cancers.