Survodutide, an investigational drug, has shown promising results in a phase III trial for adults with obesity and type 2 diabetes. The SYNCHRONIZE-2 trial found that participants achieved significant weight loss and improved glycaemic control.
At week 76, those on 3.6 mg and 6 mg doses saw mean weight reductions of 8.2% and 9.8%, respectively, compared to 3.9% with placebo. Weight loss of at least 5% was achieved by 57.6% and 64.5% of participants on the respective doses, versus 35.1% on placebo.
Sean Wharton of McMaster University led the trial, which involved 752 participants with a mean age of 55.7 years and a mean BMI of 36.5. They were randomly assigned to receive once-weekly subcutaneous survodutide at 3.6 mg or 6 mg, or placebo.
Key findings included a decline in glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) by 0.9 percentage points with 3.6 mg and 0.8 percentage points with 6 mg, compared to a 0.2 percentage-point reduction with placebo. Glycaemic control is essential in diabetes management, as it helps prevent complications.
However, gastrointestinal adverse events were reported in 72.8% of participants on 3.6 mg and 77.7% on 6 mg, compared to 38.6% on placebo. These events were generally described as mild to moderate and transient.
The study’s weight-loss analysis used a treatment-regimen estimand, assessing outcomes regardless of treatment discontinuation or use of other therapies. Both survodutide doses produced significantly greater weight reduction than placebo, but the higher frequency of side effects raises tolerability concerns.
Survodutide acts on both glucagon and GLP-1 receptors, potentially offering a new approach to managing obesity and type 2 diabetes. The findings were published in The New England Journal of Medicine (DOI: 10.1056/NEJMoa2607219).
