Ozempic and similar medications might reduce the risk of obesity-related cancers more effectively than other types of weight loss and diabetes drugs, according to a new study.
A study has revealed that individuals taking Ozempic and other drugs belonging to the class known as glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) have a reduced risk of being diagnosed with 10 out of 13 cancers associated with obesity.
Researchers from Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine analyzed health records of over a million people with type 2 diabetes who were treated with insulin, metformin, or GLP-1 drugs. Their findings revealed that patients on GLP-1 drugs had the lowest risk of developing obesity-related cancers.
The study utilized a database of electronic health records (EHRs) from 113 million U.S. patients. Among them, 1,651,452 individuals had a diagnosis of type 2 diabetes and were prescribed either GLP-1 drugs, insulin, or metformin between March 2005 and November 2018. None of these patients had a history of any of the 13 obesity-linked cancers.
While the paper provides preliminary evidence, the study authors acknowledge its limitations. For instance, EHRs inherently have drawbacks such as overdiagnosis, underdiagnosis, and misdiagnosis.
There are also unmeasured or uncontrolled variables and biases, so causal conclusions cannot be drawn.
However, the researchers note that the potential cancer-preventative effects of Ozempic and similar drugs warrant further long-term studies.
Obesity-associated cancers refer to those where excess body fat is linked to an elevated risk of cancer development and poorer prognosis in affected patients.
These cancers include oesophageal, colorectal, endometrial, gallbladder, kidney, liver, ovarian, and pancreatic cancer, as well as meningioma—the most common type of brain tumor—and multiple myeloma—a type of blood cancer.
Obesity also can contribute to insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes, which exacerbate the risk and prognosis of these cancers.
Other potential positive effects from Ozempic beyond weight loss have been explored in other studies.
In a recent trial sponsored by Novo Nordisk, the pharmaceutical company behind Ozempic, researchers at University College London conducted the largest examination of the drug to date. The study encompassed 17,604 adults aged 45 and over from 41 countries.
Following a 20-week period of using Ozempic, 62 percent of patients experienced a loss of more than 5 percent of their body weight, as opposed to only 10 percent of patients in the placebo group.
However, the decrease in the risk of heart attacks, strokes, or heart failure remained consistent among patients who achieved more than a 5 percent reduction in body weight and those who experienced lesser weight loss.
The research also discovered that Ozempic decreased the likelihood of a heart attack or stroke by 20 percent in obese individuals with cardiovascular disease.
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