ASCO 2025: GLP-1 agonists show potential in reducing obesity-related cancer risk
GLP-1 receptor agonists may reduce the risk of patients with obesity and diabetes developing 14 obesity-related cancers.
A collaborative team of researchers from institutions throughout the USA has discovered that GLP-1 receptor agonists, a widely used diabetes treatment, may reduce the risk of developing obesity-related cancer. This exciting finding, presented at the 2025 ASCO Annual Meeting (May 30–June 3, IL, USA), represents a crucial first step towards the discovery of treatments that may lower the risk of cancers caused by obesity, for which there are currently none.
Obesity is becoming increasingly recognised as a significant contributor towards the development of cancer across the globe, with 14 types of cancer known to be directly linked to obesity. However, there are currently no treatments that have been proven to reduce the risk of these obesity-related cancers.
GLP-1 receptor agonists are a relatively new type of medication that have seen extensive and widespread use for the last decade. Primarily used to treat type 2 diabetes, these drugs facilitate the regulation of blood sugar levels by mimicking the hormone GLP-1. Some GLP-1 receptor agonists, such as semaglutide, have also been approved to treat obesity. Despite their widespread use, not much is known about how these drugs influence the risk of developing obesity-related cancer.
“I see many patients with obesity, and given the clear link between cancer and obesity, defining the clinical role of GLP-1 medications in cancer prevention is important,” commented ASCO President Robin Zon.
Researchers conducted a target trial emulation study between 2013 and 2023, observing 170,030 adults with diabetes across 43 health systems in the USA. Half of the patients were treated with a GLP-1 receptor agonist, while the other half were treated with DPP-4 inhibitors – which work by blocking the DPP-4 enzyme, but have not been proven to help with weight loss. As the study was just observational, propensity score matching was used to reduce bias by ensuring the two groups being compared had similar characteristics.
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The result showed that the risk of developing obesity-related cancer was reduced by 7% in patients treated with GLP-1 receptor agonists when compared to those treated with DPP-4 inhibitors, with the chances of death also being 8% lower in the former group. Notably, there were 16% fewer colon cancer cases and 28% fewer rectal cancer cases in the GLP-1 agonist group, and the risk of developing any of the fourteen obesity-related cancers was not elevated.
With obesity-related cancer a worldwide concern, this study is key in getting the ball rolling towards the identification of medications that can target and prevent the development of these cancers. The next steps will involve following patients taking GLP-1 receptor agonists across longer periods of time, as well as investigating the effects of these drugs on possibly reducing cancer risk in patients who do not have diabetes.
“These data are reassuring, but more studies are required to prove causation,” remarked lead author Lucas A Mavromatis (NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY).