Eli Lilly’s popular weight loss drug, Zepbound, may reduce the risk of developing Type 2 diabetes by 94% in obese and overweight adults with prediabetes , according to preliminary results from a new long-term study published on Tuesday.
Lilly announced the top-line results from its three-year-long SURMOUNT-1 clinical trial evaluating the long-term safety and efficacy of tirzepatide, the active ingredient in the company’s weight loss drug.
The long-term study also found that patients on the highest dose lost 22.9% of their body weight during the three-year treatment period, compared to 2.1% for those on the placebo.
The results of the study indicate that Lilly’s drug could delay a diagnosis of diabetes for people with prediabetes, or those whose blood-sugar levels are elevated but not high enough to meet a Type 2 diabetes diagnosis.
"Obesity is a chronic disease that puts nearly 900 million adults worldwide at an increased risk of other complications such as type 2 diabetes,” Jeffrey Emmick, Lilly senior vice president for product development, said in a press release on Tuesday. “These data reinforce the potential clinical benefits of long-term therapy for people living with obesity and pre-diabetes.”
The study examined over 1,000 adults for 176 weeks, followed by a 17-week period where patients stopped treatment, making it the longest clinical trial on the drug to date, according to Lilly.
Although patients who stopped taking tirzepatide during the 17-week period began to regain weight, patients still had an 88% lower risk of developing diabetes, according to the clinical trials.
Prediabetes, also known as insulin resistance, likely affects more than one in three adults, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That’s about 98 million people.
Men with a waistline over 40 inches and women with a waistline over 35 inches are at a higher risk for prediabetes, according to the Mayo Clinic, but often the condition can be reversed with lifestyle changes and weight loss.
Tirzepatide, which is also the active ingredient in Lilly’s diabetes medication Mounjaro, is part of a relatively new class of drugs that mimic naturally produced gut hormones that suppress appetite and may improve how the body absorbs sugar and fat.
Zepbound only received Food and Drug Administration approval for chronic weight management last November.
Lilly’s products, along with both Ozempic and Wegovy produced by Novo Nordisk, have grown in popularity over the past year for their weight loss as well as cardiovascular benefits.
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Earlier this year, tirzepatide was also found to have a strong positive effect on reversing sleep apnea , for which obesity and Type 2 diabetes are comorbidities.
Earlier results from the SURMOUNT-1 study were published in the New England Journal of Medicine in 2022 and likely played a role in securing FDA approval for the drug.
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