Through the eons of time, out of all possible configurations, nature has selected glucose not only as a vital source of energy to sustain life but also as the molecule who's structure supplies the appropriate elements required for a cell to grow and multiply. This understanding, at least in part, explains the profound effects that the analog of glucose, 2‐deoxy‐d‐glucose, has been shown to have on as common and widespread diseases as cancer, viral infection, aging‐related morbidity, epilepsy, and others. This review is confined to summarizing some of the salient findings of this remarkable compound as they relate mainly to cancer. © 2014 IUBMB Life, 66(2):110–121, 2014