Expanding the Evidence on Lung Cancer Prevention

In an interview with Targeted Onc™, Sai Yendamuri, MD, MBA, FACS, discusses emerging research investigating whether interventions targeting obesity can reverse its effects on lung cancer development and progression. He highlights a recently completed clinical trial evaluating metformin, a commonly used medication, to determine whether it can counteract the adverse effects of obesity. Researchers are currently analyzing the data, with results expected by the end of the year.

Yendamuri also discusses exercise as another potential intervention, noting that preclinical experiments have demonstrated its ability to reverse obesity-related effects. Another area of interest is whether glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists, including semaglutide (Ozempic) and tirzepatide (Mounjaro), could produce similar benefits. His research team is proposing a clinical trial to the National Cancer Institute to investigate this question in humans, building on encouraging findings from animal studies.

Although these preclinical findings provide a rationale for further investigation, Yendamuri emphasizes the importance of evaluating these interventions in human clinical trials before drawing conclusions about their potential benefits. He also encourages researchers studying other cancer types, particularly those not traditionally classified among the 13 obesity-related cancers, to investigate the relationship between obesity and cancer outcomes. Expanding this evidence base could help identify additional opportunities for obesity-related cancer prevention.