New weight-loss drugs called GLP-1s might do more than just help people lose weight – a new study says they might also lower the chance of getting cancer.
The first kinds of these drugs, like liraglutide (Saxenda) and exenatide (Byetta), seemed to lower the risk of cancers linked to being overweight by 41%. This was compared to people who had weight-loss surgery, according to researchers in the scientific journal eClinicalMedicine.
One of the main researchers, Dr. Yael Wolff Sagy from Tel-Aviv, said that we don’t completely understand how these drugs work. But this study adds to the evidence that the good things these drugs do, like fighting cancer, aren’t just because people lose weight.
Newer and stronger GLP-1 drugs, like Ozempic and Zepbound, might be even better at lowering cancer risk. However, this study didn’t look at those newer drugs.
How do GLP-1 drugs work?
GLP-1 drugs act like a natural hormone in your body called GLP-1. This hormone helps control how your body uses sugar, makes you feel less hungry, and slows down how quickly food leaves your stomach.
How the study was done?
The researchers looked at the health records of over 6,300 people who were 24 years old or older. All of them were overweight, had type 2 diabetes, and were treated with the first types of GLP-1 drugs or had weight-loss surgery between 2010 and 2018.
Being overweight and having diabetes can both increase the risk of getting many kinds of cancer, like breast, colon, uterus, liver, pancreas, thyroid, stomach, and ovarian cancers.
The researchers followed these people until December 2023 to see if they got cancer. Over about 7 and a half years, almost 300 people developed a cancer that was linked to being overweight.
The most common cancers were breast cancer (26%), colon cancer (16%), and uterine cancer (15%).
Even though weight-loss surgery usually helps people lose more weight and is known to lower cancer risk, about the same number of people got cancer in the group taking GLP-1 drugs.
When the researchers looked closer at the numbers, they found that the GLP-1 drugs seemed to directly lower the risk of cancer by 41% compared to surgery.
Another main researcher, Dr. Dror Dicker, said that these GLP-1 drugs probably protect against these cancers in a few ways, including by reducing swelling in the body.
He also said that the newer, stronger GLP-1 drugs might be even better at lowering cancer risk because they help people lose more weight. But he also warned that we need more research to make sure these drugs don’t increase the risk of other kinds of cancer.
Why this matters for Black patients
Black Americans often have higher rates of being overweight, type 2 diabetes, and some cancers linked to these conditions. Things like breast, colon, and prostate cancer can be more common or more deadly for Black people.
Because these GLP-1 drugs might lower cancer risk even if someone doesn’t lose a lot of weight, they could be a helpful tool for Black individuals who might have a harder time losing weight or who can’t have surgery. Getting access to these new treatments could help reduce some of the health differences that exist.
However, it’s important to make sure that Black people have the same chance to get these drugs and good healthcare. Sometimes, there can be unfairness in the healthcare system that makes it harder for Black people to get the latest treatments. Making sure everyone has access and gets good information about these drugs will be key to making a real difference.
In short, this study suggests that GLP-1 weight-loss drugs might have an extra benefit of lowering cancer risk, and this could be especially helpful for Black Americans who are at higher risk for these health problems. But we need to make sure everyone has fair access to these treatments.