Could your daily doughnut become your routine chemotherapy?

By Vimbai Heather Mukarati

Diabetes and cancer are common disorders with tremendous impact on health worldwide. Epidemiological evidence suggests that people with diabetes are at a significantly higher risk of developing  many forms of cancer. Type 2 diabetes show many of these risk factors but the potential biologic link is not known . I know I’ve got many of you wondering “What is diabetes two? ” , “How many types of diabetes are there?” Well I’ll help ease the confusion . Diabetes is divided into 2 ; type 1 diabetes, which is caused by insulin deficiency and type 2, which is caused by insulin resistance. Type 1 diabetes can be treated by insulin injections. Although there’s no cure for type 2 diabetes, studies show it’s possible for some people to reverse it . Through diet changes and weight loss, you may be able to reach and maintain normal blood sugar levels without medication. This doesn’t mean you’re completely cured. Type 2 diabetes is an ongoing disease.

As I mentioned before , type 2 diabetes is the one which brings about a higher risk for cancer.Evidence from various observational studies suggests that some medications used to treat hyperglycemia are associated with an increased risk of cancer. Cancer cells may be particularly affected by hyperinsulinemia because of an increased concentration of insulin receptors, often in a form that is particularly mitogenic.Type 2 diabetes is characterized by chronic low-grade inflammation, which increases production of free radicals that can disrupt insulin signaling and damage DNA often leading to various forms of cancer. In simpler terms,  DNA sustains more damage and gets fixed less often when blood sugar levels are high compared to when blood sugar is at a normal, healthy level, thereby increasing one’s cancer risk. Exposure to high glucose levels leads to DNA damage and the suppression of DNA repair, which in combination could cause genome instability and cancer.

It has also been suggested that the elevated cancer risk for diabetics arises from hormonal dysregulation. Insulin resistance causes the pancreas to keep producing more and more insulin leading to hyperinsulinemia.The hormone insulin can stimulate cell growth, possibly leading to cancer.Also, most people with type 2 diabetes are overweight, and their excess fat tissue produces higher levels of adipokines than those at a healthy weight. These hormones promote chronic inflammation, which is linked to cancer. Type 2 diabetes is associated with increased risks for several cancers, including colon, breast ,pancreatic, liver. However type 2 diabetes is also linked to a modest decrease in the risk for prostate cancer!! Im sure most of youmight be thinking “Ohh, so at least it has one advantage.” Type 1 diabetes can increase the risk of stomach cancer and cervical cancer.

Generally, diabetic people have a higher risk of developing cancer, particularly diabetic women.They appear 7% likelier to develop cancer, as compared to healthy women. By contrast, men with diabetes are 19% more likely to develop cancer than healthy men.And, women with diabetes are 6% likelier than men with the same diagnosis to develop a type of cancer. It should also be noted that there are forms of chemotherapy that induce insulin resistance, bringing on symptoms of diabetes.

So, you’re all being encouraged to go for diabetes testing because 2% of the people in our population are living with diabetes unknowingly. If this diabetes is not treated properly,  this may increase the risk for cancer development.