Cancer research poised to aid people, pets A multi-disciplinary
team of University of Saskatchewan researchers are investigating
a new cancer treatment option that could benefit both humans and
their four-legged friends. In a collaborative study that
includes Drs. Valerie MacDonald and Casey Gaunt from the Western
College of Veterinary Medicine as well as Drs. Troy Harkness,
Terra Arnason and Jerry Davies from the U of S College of
Medicine, the researchers will test a promising new drug on
canine lymphoma patients at the WCVM’s Veterinary Medical
Centre. Metformin is an anti-diabetic drug that’s commonly used
to treat Type 2 diabetes. The drug induces a protein in the
cells which is responsive to stress and helps to potentially
clean up damaged cells. “If it finds a cell with damaged DNA, it
essentially makes a decision to fix the damage or get rid of the
cell. We know that it can stop the growth of normal cancer cells
and drug-resistant cancer cells,” explains Harkness, a professor
in the medical college’s