The mechanisms of action of metformin on head and neck cancer in the pre-clinical setting: a scoping review

Lucy Huang; Charmaine M Woods; Nuwan Dharmawardana; Michael Z Michael; Eng Hooi Ooi

doi:10.3389/fonc.2024.1358854

The mechanisms of action of metformin on head and neck cancer in the pre-clinical setting: a scoping review

Front Oncol. 2024 Feb 22:14:1358854. doi: 10.3389/fonc.2024.1358854. eCollection 2024.

Authors

Lucy Huang^{1

2}, Charmaine M Woods^{1

2}, Nuwan Dharmawardana^{1

2}, Michael Z Michael^{1

3}, Eng Hooi Ooi^{1

2}

Affiliations

¹ College of Medicine and Public Health, Flinders University, Adelaide, SA, Australia.
² Department of Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery, Flinders Medical Centre, Adelaide, SA, Australia.
³ Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Flinders Medical Centre, Adelaide, SA, Australia.

Abstract

This scoping review identifies the mechanistic pathways of metformin when used to treat head and neck cancer cells, in the pre-clinical setting. Understanding the underlying mechanisms will inform future experimental designs exploring metformin as a potential adjuvant for head and neck cancer. This scoping review was conducted according to the Joanna-Briggs Institute framework. A structured search identified 1288 studies, of which 52 studies fulfilled the eligibility screen. The studies are presented in themes addressing hallmarks of cancer. Most of the studies demonstrated encouraging anti-proliferative effects in vitro and reduced tumor weight and volume in animal models. However, a few studies have cautioned the use of metformin which supported cancer cell growth under certain conditions.

Keywords: cell lines; head and neck cancer; metformin; squamous cell carcinoma; xenograft.

Publication types

Systematic Review

Grants and funding

The author(s) declare financial support was received for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article. The primary author is supported by the Passe and Williams Foundation Academic Surgeon-Scientist Research scholarship.