- GLP-1, a type of diabetes and weight loss drug such as Ozempic and Mounjaro, may be associated with a lower risk of colorectal cancer, but more research is needed.
- Researchers looked at the records of more than 1.2 million diabetic patients and compared GLP-1 to other common anti-diabetic drugs such as metformin and insulin.
- In addition to diabetes and weight loss, GLP-1 research has also shown other potential benefits, including reduced cardiovascular disease risk.
Diabetes development and weight loss drugs known as GLP-1, such as Ozempic, Wegovy, and Mounjaro, may have another hidden benefit: reducing the risk of colorectal cancer.
Research letter published today
Researchers at Case Western Reserve University examined 100 million patient records over 15 years to examine how different diabetes medications affected cancer outcomes.
Building on the known association between colorectal cancer and obesity, which
“This study is actually based on a well-established hypothesis,” he said. Dr. Ron ShuPh.D., professor of biomedical informatics, director of the Center for Drug Discovery AI at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, and co-principal investigator of this study.
Xu developed an algorithm that allows his team to examine a huge database of more than 100 million patients and ask pointed questions about observed trends.
Dr. Nathan Bergerprofessor of experimental medicine and director of the Center for Health and Social Sciences at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, and the study’s other co-principal investigator, told Healthline:
“What we’ve done is condense 15 years into a few weeks or even months of research and send out a clear signal that this problem is so important that we actually need a much larger study.” I was able to give that.”
Large retrospective studies like this are great for finding correlations, but they don’t prove causation. In other words, while it has not been proven that taking GLP-1 reduces cancer risk, the finding is compelling enough to warrant further research.
“There are limitations to this dataset. For example, how long patients took GLP-1 (the study did not reveal). In this type of dataset, detailed information about the duration of treatment is unknown. “The differences found may be related to underlying differences between patients who were prescribed GLP-1 drugs and those who were not.” Dr. Sun Kim, associate professor of endocrinology at Stanford University. Kim was not involved in this study.
Berger and Xu used more than 100 million patient records to create a final study population of just over 1.2 million diabetic patients prescribed antidiabetic drugs between 2005 and 2019. .
To participate in the population study, patients had to be diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and treated with antidiabetic drugs such as metformin, insulin, and GLP-1. Researchers then matched individuals with as many similar characteristics as possible, such as age, ethnicity, lifestyle factors (exercise, diet, alcohol use, smoking), medical conditions, and socioeconomic status, to improve the drug’s effectiveness. The effects were compared.
Among insulin-treated patients (n=22,572), 167 colorectal cancers occurred during the observation period. In a similarly sized group of similar individuals prescribed GLP-1, there were only 94 cases and a 44% reduction in colorectal cancer incidence.
Similar results were seen in patients taking the popular diabetes drug metformin. There were 153 cases of colorectal cancer in the group of 18,518 patients, compared to only 96 cases in a similar group that took GLP-1. This is a 25% decrease.
Interestingly, this study suggests an even greater risk reduction in patients who are not overweight or obese.
“[GLP-1s] We control obesity and control diabetes, but these have multiple mechanisms that lead to an increase in cancer. But there’s more to it than that,” Berger said. “We divided patients into those who were obese and overweight and those who were not, and we saw an even greater effect of these drugs in patients who were not overweight or obese.”
However, we don’t want to speculate about what the additional mechanics might be at this time.
“It is very difficult to infer mechanisms because we cannot establish causality based on this data analysis. However, globally, especially in the recent world of colorectal cancer, the increasing incidence in younger patients “I am intrigued by other potential benefits of this drug class,” he said. Dr. yousIna Teitelbaum, associate professor of hematology-oncology at the University of Pennsylvania and section chief of gastrointestinal oncology at the Abramson Cancer Center at the University of Pennsylvania. Teitelbaum was not involved in the study.
GLP-1 has been around since 2005 and was initially prescribed to treat diabetes. But it’s only recently that injectable semaglutide (Ozempic, Wegovy) and tirzepatide (Mounjaro) have exploded in popularity thanks to their reputation as transformative weight-loss drugs.
Recent studies have pointed to other potential benefits, including reduced risk of cardiovascular disease, improved outcomes for heart failure patients, and, of course, weight loss.
“I think it’s incredible that one drug can have so many benefits. But we must remember that obesity is associated with many health problems, including cancer. “Hmm,” Kim said.
“This is the first drug that can lead to clinically meaningful weight loss, so I think we’re seeing a tremendous amount of benefit with the GLP-1 drug.” [greater than 10% of body weight],” she added.
However, these benefits do not come without serious side effects for some people. GLP-1 acts like a hormone that slows down digestion and increases satiety. These drugs act in the intestines and are associated with many gastrointestinal problems, especially nausea and vomiting. More serious side effects may occur, including potentially fatal intestinal obstruction.
Mounjaro, Wegovy, and Ozempic all have boxes warning you about this serious side effect.
Without insurance coverage, medications can cost thousands of dollars a month, making them prohibitively expensive for many people.
It remains to be seen whether GLP-1’s myriad benefits will one day include reduced risk of colorectal cancer.
“We can’t say yet what’s going on with this drug class in terms of cancer risk, but this is an interesting area to explore, and this article is the first attempt to look at it. It’s too early,” Teitelbaum said.
GLP-1, or drugs such as Ozempic and Munjaro, may reduce the risk of colorectal cancer, according to a new study in JAMA Oncology.
This large retrospective study examined the records of more than 1.2 million people with diabetes.
Despite these findings, clinical trials will be needed to conclude whether there is a causal relationship between the drugs and reduced cancer risk.