Dr Mavromatis talks to ecancer at ASCO 2025 about a large observational study of more than 170,000 patients with diabetes and obesity in the United States

It found that GLP-1 receptor agonists may modestly reduce the risk of fourteen obesity-related cancers, especially colorectal cancer, when compared to DDP-4 inhibitors.

Dr Mavromatis notes that although obesity is now recognized as an increasingly important cause of cancer in the United States and worldwide, no medications have been proven to lower the cancer risk associated with obesity. This study begins to fill that gap by evaluating GLP-1 receptor agonists, a relatively new but widely prescribed medication that treats diabetes, obesity, and related conditions.

The results suggest they may modestly cut the chance of developing certain cancers, especially cancers of the colon and rectum,and reduce rates of death due to all causes. While the data is interesting, more studies may be required to prove causation.

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