A new real-world study demonstrates how effective weight-loss medications, especially GLP-1 receptor agonists, are in greatly reducing the risk of obesity-related cancers. These cancers have been attributed to 13 solid tumors, such as pancreatic cancer and postmenopausal breast cancer. This groundbreaking research ignited an urgency among the leading experts in obesity and cancer. They’re now asking for new drugs to be urgently tested on patients who have just been diagnosed with cancer for their potential to save lives.
This multidisciplinary team of 54 international experts from 12 countries conducted groundbreaking research and made paradigm-shifting discoveries. They released a joint statement, calling on the CDC to prioritize weight-loss drugs among other strategies as a way to prevent cancer. Prof. Jason Halford, former president of the European Association for the Study of Obesity and head of psychology at Leeds University, emphasized the importance of these drugs, stating that they could mark “a whole new era of preventive cancer medicine.”
Obesity has notoriously been recognized as a powerful risk factor for many cancers. Although more research is needed, available data indicate that bariatric surgery reduces the risk of obesity-related cancers by around 30 -42%. According to the study, GLP-1 receptor agonists could reduce this risk by almost 50%.
Prof Mark Lawler, a cancer research expert from Queen’s University Belfast, is already internationally renowned for his work. He focused on the revolutionary impact that these discoveries could have. He stated, “We already know bariatric surgery cuts obesity-related cancer risk by about a third; these data suggest target GLP-1s may cut that risk by nearly 50% – an approach that would be transformational in preventing obesity-related cancer.”
This observational study included data from more than 6,000 adults with no history of cancer. Studies have shown that GLP-1 suppression leads to reduced inflammation, a major driver for cancer proliferation. This anti-inflammatory effect may offer an important mechanism by which weight-loss drugs can reduce cancer hazards linked to obesity.
Prof. Halford was right to highlight the urgent need for more research into these drugs’ effectiveness. He proposed using experimental drugs against them on patients who’d just been diagnosed with cancer. This would be a great way to start to understand their effects on weight management and overall cancer outcomes. This might be the beginning of a new day,” he said. It’s not prevention only…weight management in those newly diagnosed with cancer is equally important in the context of outcomes. Obesity is becoming implicated in more and more cancers.
Dr. Matthew Harris, who led Heller’s research on the project, was excited about broader applications these findings could lead to and help inform. He stated that these medications “provide genuinely fantastic weight loss and may provide an intervention that could be delivered on a population scale, where we have not been able to achieve this before.”
While the results seem promising, experts recommend caution while interpreting results from this observational study. As Prof. Lawler pointed out, whatever it is, it needs to be tested extensively. This makes it less likely that new-generation GLP-1 receptor agonists inadvertently increase the risk of non-obesity-related cancers.
The University of Manchester meanwhile is preparing to put their efficacy findings to the test in a large-scale clinical trial. In the next three to five years, they’ll include tens of thousands of patients to study just how well and safe these drugs can prevent cancers associated with obesity.