Eli Lilly’s GIP/GLP-1 receptor agonist, tirzepatide, has been shown to significantly reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes (T2D) in overweight and obese adults with pre-diabetes.
The phase 3 SURMOUNT-1 study evaluated weekly injections of the drug, which already holds approvals for weight management and to treat T2D, at three dose levels in more than 1,000 pre-diabetes patients for 176 weeks.
Results showed that tirzepatide reduced the risk of progression to T2D by 94% compared to placebo and was associated with sustained weight loss throughout the treatment period, with patients receiving the highest dose of the drug experiencing a 22.9% average decrease in body weight compared to 2.1% for placebo.
Additionally, those who discontinued tirzepatide during a 17-week off-treatment follow-up period began to regain weight and had some increase in progression to T2D.
More than 5.6 million people in the UK are estimated to be living with diabetes and T2D accounts for 90% of cases.
People who are overweight or obese are at increased risk of developing T2D, as overeating and inactivity can exacerbate insulin resistance.
Jeff Emmick, senior vice president, product development at Lilly, said: “Obesity is a chronic disease that puts nearly 900 million adults worldwide at an increased risk of other complications such as T2D… This data reinforces the potential clinical benefits of long-term therapy for people living with obesity and pre-diabetes.”
The readout comes just under three weeks after Lilly shared positive late-stage results for tirzepatide in adults with heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) and obesity.
The phase 3 SUMMIT trial, which randomised more than 730 HFpEF patients with obesity to receive one of three tirzepatide doses or placebo, demonstrated a 38% reduction in the risk of heart failure outcomes, such as hospitalisation and cardiovascular death, for the tirzepatide group compared to placebo.
Tirzepatide also recently showed promise as a treatment for the fatty liver disease metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH).
In the mid-stage SYNERGY-NASH trial, 51.8%, 62.8% and 73.3% of patients receiving 5mg, 10mg and 15mg doses of tirzepatide, respectively, achieved an absence of MASH with no worsening of fibrosis on liver histology compared to 13.2% of those in the placebo cohort at 52 weeks.