Metformin Pharmacology in Human Cancers: A Proof of Principle Study

Thoracic Neoplasm Clinical Trial

Official title:

Metformin Pharmacology in Human Cancers

Clinical Trial Details — Status: Terminated

Administrative data

• NCT number: NCT03477162
• Other study ID #: D17188
• Status: Terminated
• Phase: Early Phase 1
• Start date: May 15, 2018
• Est. completion date: November 30, 2021

Study information

• Verified date: November 2022
• Source: Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center
• Contact: n/a
• Is FDA regulated: No
• Study type: Interventional

Clinical Trial Summary

This is a presurgical (proof of principle, window of opportunity) study in patients with surgically resectable thoracic tumors to determine steady-state tissue and plasma concentrations of metformin.

Description:

To understand the variability in clinical results testing metformin as an anti-cancer agent, it is important to determine the concentrations of metformin that are achievable in tissue. Clinical effects of metformin develop gradually over several days of treatment. Steady-state plasma metformin concentrations are correlated with anti-hyperglycemic response. Thus, achieving steady-state concentrations in this study will allow accurate determination of the most representative concentrations of metformin in normal and cancerous tissues, as well as determine AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) signaling differences in these tissues. As tha Primary Objective is to determine the concentration of metformin in tumors, patients will be treated with metformin extended release (ER) (Glucophage® XR), starting at 750 milligrams (mg) oral (PO) once daily (QD) for 4 days, then escalating to 750 mg PO twice daily (BID) for 3-6 days prior to surgery. FDA prescribing information indicates that metformin reaches steady-state plasma concentrations within 24-48 hours after the start of dosing in humans; thus, the 7-to-10-day time frame of this study will allow sufficient time for metformin to reach steady-state plasma concentrations, in addition to time allotted for potential accumulation in tissues. Metformin concentrations will be measured using a validated liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) assay.

Recruitment information / eligibility

• Status: Terminated
• Enrollment: 18
• Est. completion date: November 30, 2021
• Est. primary completion date: November 30, 2021
• Accepts healthy volunteers: No
• Gender: All
• Age group: 18 Years and older

Eligibility

Inclusion Criteria:

• Invasive malignant solid tumor of thoracic origin (e.g., lung, esophageal, thymus, mesothelioma, chest wall, mediastinum, trachea, pleura) with the intent to treat or biopsy by surgery as standard of care. Tumor must be =2 centimeters (cm).
• Patients with multicentric disease are eligible. Samples from all available tumors are requested for research purposes.
• Patients with Type 2 diabetes mellitus being treated with metformin (any dose) for a clinical indication at the time of study enrollment are eligible, and will continue metformin treatment as clinically indicated during the presurgical study period. Their dose of metformin will NOT be changed.
• Patients not on metformin at the time of study entry must be willing to take metformin extended release (Glucophage® XR, 750 mg QD for 4 days, then 750 mg BID for 3-6 days) for a total of 7-10 days prior to surgery.
• Patients do not require a diagnosis of diabetes to be enrolled in the study.
• All patients must be willing to keep a drug diary indicating the dates and times of metformin administration.

Patients must meet the following clinical laboratory criteria:

• Absolute neutrophil count (ANC) greater than or equal to 1,500/mm3 and platelet count greater than or equal to 75,000/mm3.
• Total bilirubin less than or equal to 1.5x the upper limit of the normal range (ULN).
• Alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) less than or equal to 3x ULN.
• Estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) > 60 mL/min/1.73m2 or estimated creatinine clearance (eCrCL) > 60 mL/min
• Ability to give informed consent.
• Patients must be willing to provide 20 milliliters (mL) of blood for research use.
• Patient must be willing to provide consent for use of archived tissue for research.

Exclusion Criteria:

• History of diabetes that is currently being treated without metformin.
• Patients who, at the time of study entry, are not taking metformin for a clinical indication, and who will need a radiographic analysis with an iodinated contrast agent during the metformin study treatment period.
• This criterion does not apply to patients taking clinically indicated metformin at the time of study entry.
• History of liver disease as defined with liver function tests (LFTs) above those in the inclusion
• Known hypersensitivity to metformin.
• History of reactive hypoglycemia.
• Active or history of lactic acidosis, metabolic acidosis, or diabetic ketoacidosis.

Related Conditions & MeSH terms

• Thoracic Neoplasm
• Thoracic Neoplasms

Intervention

Drug:
• Metformin
Metformin will be given to patients prior to surgery.

Locations

Country	Name	City	State
United States	Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center	Lebanon	New Hampshire

Sponsors (1)

Lead Sponsor	Collaborator
Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center

Country where clinical trial is conducted

United States, 

References & Publications (38)

Bodmer M, Meier C, Krahenbuhl S, Jick SS, Meier CR. Long-term metformin use is associated with decreased risk of breast cancer. Diabetes Care. 2010 Jun;33(6):1304-8. doi: 10.2337/dc09-1791. Epub 2010 Mar 18. — View Citation

Bolen S, Feldman L, Vassy J, Wilson L, Yeh HC, Marinopoulos S, Wiley C, Selvin E, Wilson R, Bass EB, Brancati FL. Systematic review: comparative effectiveness and safety of oral medications for type 2 diabetes mellitus. Ann Intern Med. 2007 Sep 18;147(6):386-99. doi: 10.7326/0003-4819-147-6-200709180-00178. Epub 2007 Jul 16. Erratum In: Ann Intern Med. 2007 Dec 18;147(12):887. — View Citation

Camacho L, Dasgupta A, Jiralerspong S. Metformin in breast cancer - an evolving mystery. Breast Cancer Res. 2015 Jun 26;17(1):88. doi: 10.1186/s13058-015-0598-8. — View Citation

Chae YK, Arya A, Malecek MK, Shin DS, Carneiro B, Chandra S, Kaplan J, Kalyan A, Altman JK, Platanias L, Giles F. Repurposing metformin for cancer treatment: current clinical studies. Oncotarget. 2016 Jun 28;7(26):40767-40780. doi: 10.18632/oncotarget.8194. — View Citation

Christensen MM, Brasch-Andersen C, Green H, Nielsen F, Damkier P, Beck-Nielsen H, Brosen K. The pharmacogenetics of metformin and its impact on plasma metformin steady-state levels and glycosylated hemoglobin A1c. Pharmacogenet Genomics. 2011 Dec;21(12):837-50. doi: 10.1097/FPC.0b013e32834c0010. Erratum In: Pharmacogenet Genomics. 2015 Jan;25(1):48-50. — View Citation

Decensi A, Puntoni M, Goodwin P, Cazzaniga M, Gennari A, Bonanni B, Gandini S. Metformin and cancer risk in diabetic patients: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Cancer Prev Res (Phila). 2010 Nov;3(11):1451-61. doi: 10.1158/1940-6207.CAPR-10-0157. Epub 2010 Oct 12. — View Citation

DeFronzo RA, Goodman AM. Efficacy of metformin in patients with non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus. The Multicenter Metformin Study Group. N Engl J Med. 1995 Aug 31;333(9):541-9. doi: 10.1056/NEJM199508313330902. — View Citation

Diabetes Prevention Program Research Group. Long-term safety, tolerability, and weight loss associated with metformin in the Diabetes Prevention Program Outcomes Study. Diabetes Care. 2012 Apr;35(4):731-7. doi: 10.2337/dc11-1299. — View Citation

Dowling RJ, Lam S, Bassi C, Mouaaz S, Aman A, Kiyota T, Al-Awar R, Goodwin PJ, Stambolic V. Metformin Pharmacokinetics in Mouse Tumors: Implications for Human Therapy. Cell Metab. 2016 Apr 12;23(4):567-8. doi: 10.1016/j.cmet.2016.03.006. No abstract available. — View Citation

Dowling RJ, Zakikhani M, Fantus IG, Pollak M, Sonenberg N. Metformin inhibits mammalian target of rapamycin-dependent translation initiation in breast cancer cells. Cancer Res. 2007 Nov 15;67(22):10804-12. doi: 10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-07-2310. — View Citation

Effect of intensive blood-glucose control with metformin on complications in overweight patients with type 2 diabetes (UKPDS 34). UK Prospective Diabetes Study (UKPDS) Group. Lancet. 1998 Sep 12;352(9131):854-65. Erratum In: Lancet 1998 Nov 7;352(9139):1558. — View Citation

El-Mir MY, Nogueira V, Fontaine E, Averet N, Rigoulet M, Leverve X. Dimethylbiguanide inhibits cell respiration via an indirect effect targeted on the respiratory chain complex I. J Biol Chem. 2000 Jan 7;275(1):223-8. doi: 10.1074/jbc.275.1.223. — View Citation

Evans JM, Donnelly LA, Emslie-Smith AM, Alessi DR, Morris AD. Metformin and reduced risk of cancer in diabetic patients. BMJ. 2005 Jun 4;330(7503):1304-5. doi: 10.1136/bmj.38415.708634.F7. Epub 2005 Apr 22. No abstract available. — View Citation

Giovannucci E, Harlan DM, Archer MC, Bergenstal RM, Gapstur SM, Habel LA, Pollak M, Regensteiner JG, Yee D. Diabetes and cancer: a consensus report. Diabetes Care. 2010 Jul;33(7):1674-85. doi: 10.2337/dc10-0666. — View Citation

Glucophage XR product insert. https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&ved=0ahUKEwjcrMLO8cPXAhWGZiYKHVe1DoMQFggrMAA&url=https%3A%2F%2Fpackageinserts.bms.com%2Fpi%2Fpi_glucophage.pdf&usg=AOvVaw2zAbyMgwlF7wxaXv60vtv3.

Graham GG, Punt J, Arora M, Day RO, Doogue MP, Duong JK, Furlong TJ, Greenfield JR, Greenup LC, Kirkpatrick CM, Ray JE, Timmins P, Williams KM. Clinical pharmacokinetics of metformin. Clin Pharmacokinet. 2011 Feb;50(2):81-98. doi: 10.2165/11534750-000000000-00000. — View Citation

Gunton JE, Delhanty PJ, Takahashi S, Baxter RC. Metformin rapidly increases insulin receptor activation in human liver and signals preferentially through insulin-receptor substrate-2. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2003 Mar;88(3):1323-32. doi: 10.1210/jc.2002-021394. Erratum In: J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2004 Jan;89(1):434. — View Citation

Hurst RT, Lee RW. Increased incidence of coronary atherosclerosis in type 2 diabetes mellitus: mechanisms and management. Ann Intern Med. 2003 Nov 18;139(10):824-34. doi: 10.7326/0003-4819-139-10-200311180-00010. — View Citation

Jalving M, Gietema JA, Lefrandt JD, de Jong S, Reyners AK, Gans RO, de Vries EG. Metformin: taking away the candy for cancer? Eur J Cancer. 2010 Sep;46(13):2369-80. doi: 10.1016/j.ejca.2010.06.012. Epub 2010 Jul 23. — View Citation

Jiralerspong S, Palla SL, Giordano SH, Meric-Bernstam F, Liedtke C, Barnett CM, Hsu L, Hung MC, Hortobagyi GN, Gonzalez-Angulo AM. Metformin and pathologic complete responses to neoadjuvant chemotherapy in diabetic patients with breast cancer. J Clin Oncol. 2009 Jul 10;27(20):3297-302. doi: 10.1200/JCO.2009.19.6410. Epub 2009 Jun 1. — View Citation

Kajbaf F, De Broe ME, Lalau JD. Therapeutic Concentrations of Metformin: A Systematic Review. Clin Pharmacokinet. 2016 Apr;55(4):439-59. doi: 10.1007/s40262-015-0323-x. — View Citation

Li D, Yeung SC, Hassan MM, Konopleva M, Abbruzzese JL. Antidiabetic therapies affect risk of pancreatic cancer. Gastroenterology. 2009 Aug;137(2):482-8. doi: 10.1053/j.gastro.2009.04.013. Epub 2009 Apr 16. — View Citation

Libby G, Donnelly LA, Donnan PT, Alessi DR, Morris AD, Evans JM. New users of metformin are at low risk of incident cancer: a cohort study among people with type 2 diabetes. Diabetes Care. 2009 Sep;32(9):1620-5. doi: 10.2337/dc08-2175. Epub 2009 Jun 29. — View Citation

Lipska KJ, Bailey CJ, Inzucchi SE. Use of metformin in the setting of mild-to-moderate renal insufficiency. Diabetes Care. 2011 Jun;34(6):1431-7. doi: 10.2337/dc10-2361. No abstract available. — View Citation

Mohammed A, Janakiram NB, Brewer M, Ritchie RL, Marya A, Lightfoot S, Steele VE, Rao CV. Antidiabetic Drug Metformin Prevents Progression of Pancreatic Cancer by Targeting in Part Cancer Stem Cells and mTOR Signaling. Transl Oncol. 2013 Dec 1;6(6):649-59. doi: 10.1593/tlo.13556. eCollection 2013 Dec 1. — View Citation

Nathan DM, Buse JB, Davidson MB, Ferrannini E, Holman RR, Sherwin R, Zinman B; American Diabetes Association; European Association for Study of Diabetes. Medical management of hyperglycemia in type 2 diabetes: a consensus algorithm for the initiation and adjustment of therapy: a consensus statement of the American Diabetes Association and the European Association for the Study of Diabetes. Diabetes Care. 2009 Jan;32(1):193-203. doi: 10.2337/dc08-9025. Epub 2008 Oct 22. — View Citation

Poloz Y, Stambolic V. Obesity and cancer, a case for insulin signaling. Cell Death Dis. 2015 Dec 31;6(12):e2037. doi: 10.1038/cddis.2015.381. — View Citation

Rena G, Pearson ER, Sakamoto K. Molecular mechanism of action of metformin: old or new insights? Diabetologia. 2013 Sep;56(9):1898-906. doi: 10.1007/s00125-013-2991-0. Epub 2013 Jul 9. — View Citation

Shu Y, Sheardown SA, Brown C, Owen RP, Zhang S, Castro RA, Ianculescu AG, Yue L, Lo JC, Burchard EG, Brett CM, Giacomini KM. Effect of genetic variation in the organic cation transporter 1 (OCT1) on metformin action. J Clin Invest. 2007 May;117(5):1422-31. doi: 10.1172/JCI30558. — View Citation

Timmins P, Donahue S, Meeker J, Marathe P. Steady-state pharmacokinetics of a novel extended-release metformin formulation. Clin Pharmacokinet. 2005;44(7):721-9. doi: 10.2165/00003088-200544070-00004. — View Citation

Tucker GT, Casey C, Phillips PJ, Connor H, Ward JD, Woods HF. Metformin kinetics in healthy subjects and in patients with diabetes mellitus. Br J Clin Pharmacol. 1981 Aug;12(2):235-46. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2125.1981.tb01206.x. — View Citation

Viollet B, Guigas B, Sanz Garcia N, Leclerc J, Foretz M, Andreelli F. Cellular and molecular mechanisms of metformin: an overview. Clin Sci (Lond). 2012 Mar;122(6):253-70. doi: 10.1042/CS20110386. — View Citation

Wadamori N, Shinohara R, Ishihara Y. Photoacoustic depth profiling of a skin model for non-invasive glucose measurement. Annu Int Conf IEEE Eng Med Biol Soc. 2008;2008:5644-7. doi: 10.1109/IEMBS.2008.4650494. — View Citation

Witters LA. The blooming of the French lilac. J Clin Invest. 2001 Oct;108(8):1105-7. doi: 10.1172/JCI14178. No abstract available. — View Citation

Wright JL, Stanford JL. Metformin use and prostate cancer in Caucasian men: results from a population-based case-control study. Cancer Causes Control. 2009 Nov;20(9):1617-22. doi: 10.1007/s10552-009-9407-y. Epub 2009 Aug 4. — View Citation

Xu H, Aldrich MC, Chen Q, Liu H, Peterson NB, Dai Q, Levy M, Shah A, Han X, Ruan X, Jiang M, Li Y, Julien JS, Warner J, Friedman C, Roden DM, Denny JC. Validating drug repurposing signals using electronic health records: a case study of metformin associated with reduced cancer mortality. J Am Med Inform Assoc. 2015 Jan;22(1):179-91. doi: 10.1136/amiajnl-2014-002649. Epub 2014 Jul 22. — View Citation

Zakikhani M, Blouin MJ, Piura E, Pollak MN. Metformin and rapamycin have distinct effects on the AKT pathway and proliferation in breast cancer cells. Breast Cancer Res Treat. 2010 Aug;123(1):271-9. doi: 10.1007/s10549-010-0763-9. Epub 2010 Feb 5. — View Citation

Zhou G, Myers R, Li Y, Chen Y, Shen X, Fenyk-Melody J, Wu M, Ventre J, Doebber T, Fujii N, Musi N, Hirshman MF, Goodyear LJ, Moller DE. Role of AMP-activated protein kinase in mechanism of metformin action. J Clin Invest. 2001 Oct;108(8):1167-74. doi: 10.1172/JCI13505. — View Citation

* Note: There are 38 references in all — Click here to view all references

Outcome

Type	Measure	Description	Time frame	Safety issue
Other	AMPK Activity Alterations.	To determine whether metformin alters AMPK activity in tumor cells.	Within 7 days from surgery.
Primary	Lung Tumor Tissue Concentration of Metformin	To determine the intra-tumor concentrations of metformin, with a standard deviation =25% of the mean, in patients with solid tumors of thoracic origin administered metformin extended release.	Within 7 days from surgery
Secondary	Concentration of Metformin in Adipose Tissue	To determine the concentration of metformin in adipose tissue.	Within 7 days from surgery
Secondary	Concentration of Metformin in Tumor-adjacent Normal Tissue	To determine the concentration of metformin in tumor-adjacent normal tissue.	Within 7 days from surgery
Secondary	Concentration of Metformin in Plasma.	To determine the concentration of metformin in plasma.	Within 7 days from surgery
Secondary	Concentration of Metformin in Whole Blood.	To determine the concentration of metformin in whole blood.	Within 7 days from surgery