Lindsey Wang, Rong Xu, David C Kaelber et al. JAMA Netw Open 2024;7;(7):e2421305
Thirteen human malignant neoplasms have been identified as obesity-associated cancers (OACs), ie, the presence of excess body fat is associated with increased risk of developing cancer and worse prognosis in patients with these specific tumors. The glucagon-like peptide receptor agonist (GLP-1RA) class of pharmaceuticals are effective agents for the treatment of type 2 diabetes (T2D) and for achieving weight loss. We compared the incident risk of each of the 13 obesity-related cancers in patients with T2D who were prescribed GLP-1RAs vs insulins or metformin. In the study population of 1,651,452 patients with T2D, GLP-1RAs compared with insulin were associated with a significant risk reduction in 10 of 13 OACs, including in gallbladder cancer, meningioma, pancreatic cancer, hepatocellular carcinoma, ovarian cancer, colorectal cancer, multiple myeloma, esophageal cancer, endometrial cancer, and kidney cancer. GLP-1RAs were not associated with a reduced risk of postmenopausal breast cancer or thyroid cancer. Compared with metformin, GLP-1RAs were not associated with a decreased risk of any cancers but were associated with an increased risk of kidney cancer. In this study, GLP-1RAs were associated with lower risks of specific types of OACs compared with insulins or metformin in patients with T2D. These findings provide preliminary evidence of the potential benefit of GLP-1RAs for cancer prevention in high-risk populations and support further preclinical and clinical studies for the prevention of certain OACs.
24 Mar, 2026