Metformin Intervention—A Panacea for Cancer Treatment?

SIMPLE SUMMARY: This literature analysis is focused on the pleiotropic action associated with metformin treatment. Precisely, metformin treatment exerts many health effects, mainly by inhibiting inflammatory processes, increasing antioxidant capacity, and improving glycemic and lipid metabolism, which overall may be particularly useful in cancer patients’ clinical management. Consequently, metformin is the main novel therapeutic extensively studied in various clinical trials, which are also summarized in this review. ABSTRACT: The molecular mechanism of action and the individual influence of various metabolic pathways related to metformin intervention are under current investigation. The available data suggest that metformin provides many advantages, exhibiting anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer, hepatoprotective, cardioprotective, otoprotective, radioprotective, and radio-sensitizing properties depending on cellular context. This literature review was undertaken to provide novel evidence concerning metformin intervention, with a particular emphasis on cancer treatment and prevention. Undoubtedly, the pleiotropic actions associated with metformin include inhibiting inflammatory processes, increasing antioxidant capacity, and improving glycemic and lipid metabolism. Consequently, these characteristics make metformin an attractive medicament to translate to human trials, the promising results of which were also summarized in this review.