Cocktail of Diabetes and Hypertension Drugs Kills Cancer Cells 

London: A combination of drugs for diabetes and hypertension may offer an effective new way to combat cancer, suggests a new research.

In their experiments, the researchers found that the combination of the diabetes drug metformin and the antihypertensive drug syrosingopine drives cancer cells to programmed “suicide”.

Metformin is a widely prescribed drug for the treatment of Type-2 diabetes. Besides its blood sugar lowering effect, it also displays anti-cancer properties. The usual therapeutic dose, however, is too low to effectively fight cancer. At higher doses, the antidiabetic drug inhibits the growth of cancer cells but could also induce unwanted side effects.

The new research published in the journal Science Advances showed that the antihypertensive drug syrosingopine enhances the anti-cancer efficacy of metformin. The study showed the cocktail of these two drugs is effective in a wide range of cancers.

In mice with malignant liver cancer, enlargement of the liver was reduced after the therapy. Also the number of tumour nodules was less -- in some animals the tumours disappeared completely.

The researchers found that the drugs interrupt the vital processes which provide energy for the cancer cell.

--IANS