Minerva Endocrinology 2021 Mar 16

DOI: 10.23736/S2724-6507.21.03289-2

Copyright © 2021 EDIZIONI MINERVA MEDICA

language: English

Metformin improves survival in patients with concurrent diabetes and small cell lung cancer: a meta-analysis

Hua FAN ¹, Shikun BAI ², Xin GUAN ¹, Wen MA ¹, Yu FU ¹, Xuan ZHANG ¹, Lili DENG ³, Jing TIAN ¹ ✉

¹ Department of Oncology and Hematology, People’s Hospital of Leshan，Leshan City, P.R China; ² Emergency Medicine Department, People’s Hospital of Leshan, Leshan City, P.R China; ³ Ultrasound Imaging Department, People’s Hospital of Leshan, Leshan City, P.R China

OBJECTIVE: To compare survival outcome among the patients with concurrent small cell lung cancer (SCLC) and diabetes mellitus (DM) using metformin or without metformin.
METHODS: A systematic literature search for relevant studies up to Oct 2020 was conducted. Outcome of the included studies included overall survival (OS) or disease-free survival (DFS). HR values were pooled to estimate the effect of metformin on survival outcomes.
RESULTS: 6 studies with 539 participants with both SCLC and diabetes were included in the analysis. The patients with metformin usage had significantly longer OS and DFS than those without metformin usage [OS: HR=0.72 (0.53-0.98), p=0.04; DFS: HR= 0.59 (0.45-0.76), p<0.0001)]. The studies included were not significantly different in the two analyses by heterogeneity test. There was no obvious publication bias.
CONCLUSIONS: Metformin may improve survival among patients with concurrent SCLC and DM. Further investigations especially randomized control trials are warranted, especially among the patients who do not have diabetes.

KEY WORDS: Small cell lung cancer; Diabetes; Metformin; Survival