The principal investigator of the study, John B. Buse, M.D., Ph.D. , chief of the Division of Endocrinology & Metabolism in the Department of Medicine at UNC, said, "This study is the largest effort to date that examines the hypothetical insulin-cancer relationship. Both its size and the quality of the data will clearly enable us to provide a much better estimate of the safety of glargine in particular and insulin in general with regards to cancer risk."

The study plans to analyze data from about 400,000 people with diabetes, determine their use of diabetes treatments including insulin, and document the incidence of cancer. "We have recruited a truly exceptional group of scientists and resources from across the country to provide as definitive a resolution to the issue as possible over the next year and a half." said Buse.

Source: University of North Carolina School of Medicine