Liver cancer (more than 70% of cases being hepatocellular carcinoma, HCC) is the sixth most common neoplasm and the third most frequent cause of cancer death worldwide.1 In addition to well-known HCC risk factors, such as chronic hepatitis B/C infection or excessive alcohol consumption, type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM) has been found to be independently associated with a twofold to fourfold increased risk of HCC.2 Hyperglycaemia and HCC also share several common risk factors, such as HCV infection, alcohol consumption and obesity; thus, the increased HCC risk in patients with type 2 DM could be mediated through both hyperglycaemia and obesity. One anti-diabetic medication, metformin, has been shown to be associated with a reduced risk of HCC, whereas insulin and sulfonylureas have been linked to a higher HCC risk.3 Among the newer anti-diabetic drugs—including sodium-glucose co-transporter-2 inhibitors (SGLT2i), dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitors (DPP-4i) and glucagon-like…
