Popular weight-loss drugs may help protect against a deadly disease, doctor says

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GLP-1 medications have transformed diabetes and obesity treatment, but emerging research suggests their benefits could extend far beyond those purposes — potentially even aiding in cancer prevention and survival.

Dr. Loren Rourke, a Texas-based board-certified breast cancer surgeon, author and speaker, said growing research suggests glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) medications — including Ozempic and Wegovy — may be associated with a lower risk of cancer diagnoses and recurrence.

She pointed to findings presented at the 2026 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting in Chicago, where researchers reported an association between GLP-1 use and lower breast cancer recurrence rates, as well as a potential role in preventing the disease.

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However, she noted that the evidence remains observational and can’t prove that the drugs reduce cancer risk.

“So these aren’t studies that, unfortunately, patients can latch onto, call their doctor and say, ‘I want to get on a GLP-1 right now to reduce my risk of breast cancer or make my breast cancer better,’” Rourke told Fox News Digital. “However, what it did do was shine the light on GLP-1s and that relationship.”

The cancer connection

The main reason that GLP-1s may aid in cancer prevention, according to Rourke, is that the drugs promote weight loss and reduce chronic inflammation.

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“GLP-1s cause a decrease in your BMI. They cause weight reduction,” she told Fox News Digital. “We know that a lower BMI equals a better prognosis with breast cancer.”

“So if the secondary effect of taking a GLP-1 means you’re going to lose weight, then that’s a benefit, because we know you’re going to do better with breast cancer.“

Diabetes and obesity medications can also lower estrogen production associated with excess body fat, the surgeon noted.

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“The more fat you have, the higher your estrogen production,” Rourke said. “You’re kind of bathing your body in estrogen, so to speak. So it intuitively makes sense that we are seeing this correlation or association.”

GLP-1s also decrease the inflammatory state in which cancer thrives, the surgeon noted.

“The more fat we have, the higher your estrogen production.”

“So if it’s fixing the overall chronic inflammation of the body, that’s going to help for a lot of reasons,” she said.

“I think this is going to extend beyond breast cancer, but we need to get that scientific proof of a direct cause — is this just an association or a correlation?”

More research needed

Rourke emphasized that researchers have not yet proven that GLP-1 medications directly affect breast cancer cells.

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“But this study has now garnered enough attention, interest and scientific hypotheses that the work is getting started for the randomized controlled trials that we’re all waiting for — and then we can act upon those.”

To patients who are considering starting GLP-1s, Rourke offered the following advice.

“My bottom-line message on this one is, if you have an elevated BMI, you’re trying to lose weight, you’ve tried a healthy diet, you’ve tried to exercise, and you’re not winning that fight, consider GLP-1s, and you’re going to get a secondary benefit.”

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In particular, post-menopausal women who are struggling with weight gain could get an extra benefit, Rourke added, but she urges them to “call their doctor and have that one-on-one conversation.”

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