Diabetes and Breast Cancer Interrelationships
Summary
Diabetes and breast cancer represent two of the most significant chronic conditions affecting women worldwide. Epidemiological data indicate that women with diabetes, particularly type 1 diabetes, may experience an elevated risk of developing breast malignancies, while type 2 diabetes has been associated with transient increases in risk around the time of diagnosis. Beyond epidemiology, diabetes influences tumour biology through hyperglycaemia, hyperinsulinaemia and chronic inflammation, which can promote cellular proliferation, angiogenesis and metastatic potential. Metabolic dysregulation in diabetes alters the tumour microenvironment, favouring DNA damage and repair deficiencies that may render breast cancers more responsive to specific therapies. Conversely, breast cancer treatments can perturb glucose homeostasis and exacerbate glycaemic control, creating a complex bidirectional relationship. Understanding these interrelationships has immediate clinical implications: early risk stratification, optimisation of glycaemic control in oncology settings and the development of combination therapies that target both metabolic and oncogenic pathways. Emerging research highlights the value of metabolic biomarkers and the repurposing of antidiabetic agents as adjuncts to standard breast cancer treatments, thereby offering new avenues for personalised management and improved patient outcomes.
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Diabetes and Breast Cancer Interrelationships publication trend
The graph below shows the total number of articles in diabetes and breast cancer interrelationships across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).
Technical terms
Type 1 diabetes (T1D): autoimmune destruction of pancreatic β-cells leading to absolute insulin deficiency.
Type 2 diabetes (T2D): metabolic disorder characterised by insulin resistance and relative insulin insufficiency.
Hyperglycaemia: elevated blood glucose levels that can fuel tumour growth and promote DNA damage.
Insulin resistance: diminished cellular response to insulin resulting in impaired glucose uptake and compensatory hyperinsulinaemia.
Triglyceride–glucose (TyG) index: composite biomarker derived from fasting triglyceride and glucose concentrations to estimate insulin resistance.
DNA damage repair deficiency: impairment in cellular mechanisms responsible for correcting DNA lesions, influencing tumour aggressiveness and therapeutic vulnerability.
References
- Diabetes mellitus and risk of breast cancer: a large-scale, prospective, population-based study. British Journal of Cancer (2023).
- Diabetes-associated breast cancer is molecularly distinct and shows a DNA damage repair deficiency. JCI Insight (2023).
- Association between triglyceride glucose index and breast cancer in 142,184 Chinese adults: findings from the REACTION study. Frontiers in Endocrinology (2024).
- Type 2 Diabetes and Breast Cancer: The Interplay between Impaired Glucose Metabolism and Oxidant Stress. Oxidative Medicine and Cellular Longevity (2015).
- Antidiabetic Drugs in Breast Cancer Patients. Cancers (2024).
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