2026-05-14 12:05:07
Weight loss jabs could dramatically improve survival odds for breast cancer patients and slash the chances of the disease returning, scientists claim.
Researchers led by Kristina Tatum, from Virginia Commonwealth University, found women using blockbuster GLP-1 slimming injections were up to 65 per cent less likely to die from any cause over a 10-year period.
The drugs were also linked to a 56 per cent lower risk of breast cancer returning.
Even more astonishingly, breast cancer patients with type 2 diabetes taking GLP-1 medications had a 91 per cent lower risk of death compared to those using insulin or metformin.
Researchers said the findings suggest “a potential association” between weight loss jabs and “improved outcomes” in overweight breast cancer patients or those with diabetes.
They added: “This study suggests that GLP-1s may offer protective benefits beyond glycaemic and weight control, potentially improving survival and recurrence risk in some female patients with breast cancer.”
The huge study, published in JAMA Network Open, analysed data from 841,831 breast cancer patients diagnosed between 2008 and 2023.
Scientists have long known obesity and type 2 diabetes can worsen breast cancer outcomes.
Researchers wrote: “Interventions for weight reduction to address obesity among patients with breast cancer may improve outcomes.”
But not everyone is convinced the miracle jabs are a cancer-busting breakthrough just yet.
Professor Paul Pharoah, from the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, warned: “The biggest red flag is that the effect sizes are enormous.
“To put this in perspective the most effective chemotherapy regimens reduce relapse by 38 per cent.
“These effect sizes simply cannot be due to the drug and so the only reasonable explanation is confounding/bias.”
Charles Birts, from the University of Southampton, added: “Overall, these findings are promising and support further clinical trials, but they should not yet change breast cancer treatment practice.”
Meanwhile, Simon Vincent said the results show the area is “worth researching further”.
Around 59,000 women and 420 men are diagnosed with breast cancer every year in Britain, making it the second most common cancer in England.
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