Wegovy: Weight loss drug semaglutide shown to cut risk of heart attack, stroke or death

Victoria AllenDaily Mail
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Camera IconThe weight loss jab semaglutide, used under the brand name Wegovy, has been shown to reduce the risk of heart attack, stroke and death from cardiovascular disease. Credit: Diy13/Getty Images/iStockphoto

A weight loss jab approved for use in the UK can cut the risk of a heart attack, stroke or death from cardiovascular disease by a fifth, researchers claim.

Semaglutide has been hailed as a “miracle” drug by celebrities including Elon Musk and Jeremy Clarkson.

It has been officially recommended for use under the brand name Wegovy, although supply issues mean it is not yet routinely prescribed for weight loss.

Now a five-year study, involving more than 17,600 adults in 41 countries, has shown a significant reduction in major cardiovascular events for participants given semaglutide compared to those receiving a dummy drug.

The study volunteers, who were over 45, overweight or obese, and had cardiovascular disease but had never had diabetes, were reportedly 20 per cent less likely to suffer a non-fatal heart attack, non-fatal stroke or death from cardiovascular disease.

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The results were announced by Novo Nordisk, the pharmaceutical giant behind Wegovy, and have not yet been published in a scientific journal or reviewed by other scientists.

Martin Holst Lange, executive vice-president for development at Novo Nordisk, said: “To date there are no approved weight management medications proven to deliver effective weight management while also reducing the risk of heart attack, stroke or cardiovascular death. Therefore, we are very excited about the results.”

Professor Stephen O’Rahilly, from the University of Cambridge, said: “The results from this trial have been long awaited and do not disappoint.

The top-line results are exciting, as preventing heart attacks and stroke with a drug that also lowers weight is very important.

“Simply put, a drug which acts to reduce body weight by targeting appetite, if taken long term by people who are overweight or obese, significantly reduces their risk of serious cardiovascular events, such as a heart attack.”

Naveed Sattar, from the University of Glasgow, added: “The top-line results are exciting, as preventing heart attacks and stroke with a drug that also lowers weight is very important.

“More details are needed on the trials to give it proper consideration, including examination of safety aspects, but even here the top line report also sounded optimistic.”

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak recently announced a £40 million pilot scheme to test the effectiveness of weight-loss jabs prescribed without hospital supervision, which could make them far more available in the future from GPs and potentially pharmacists.

The Government is understood to be increasingly convinced of the need to “medicate our way out of” the crisis caused by obesity.

Trials of Wegovy, which is injected weekly, found users lost around 12 per cent of their body weight and slashed their chance of getting Type 2 diabetes by more than half.

The jab works by hijacking the brain to suppress appetites and cut calorie intake.

This year the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence recommended it for adults with a BMI of at least 35 and one weight-related health condition.

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