On June 26, 2009 several articles published online in Diabetologia by the European Association for the Study of Diabetes investigated the possible relationship between use of insulin glargine (Lantus, sanofi-aventis) and the development of certain malignancies. The authors themselves, and the accompanying editorial, cautioned against over-interpretation of their limited data and analyses, which precluded them from drawing any firm conclusions. For example, there were contradictory findings among the studies, patient populations were not always comparable, and the duration of observation was short. Nonetheless, since the relationship of type 2 diabetes to cancer is of critical importance, further study is warranted.

The American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE) does not recommend that the use of any insulin be changed. AACE supports further research into the effectiveness and safety of all diabetes therapies and will continue to update recommendations as further data becomes available. Individual patient concerns should be discussed with their physicians.