However, overall, the absolute risk for thyroid cancer is low<\/p>\n<\/h3>\n
By Lori Solomon HealthDay Reporter<\/b>
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THURSDAY, Jan. 30, 2025 (HealthDay News) — The absolute risk for thyroid cancer is low among patients receiving glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist (GLP-1 RA) therapy, but risk is elevated in the first year of treatment, according to a study published online Jan. 23 in JAMA Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery<\/em>.<\/p>\n Juan P. Brito, M.D., from the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, and colleagues estimated the risk for incident thyroid cancer among adults with type 2 diabetes being treated with GLP-1 RAs versus other common glucose-lowering medications. The analysis included 41,112 patients starting treatment with GLP-1 RAs; 76,093 starting a dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitor (DPP4i); 43,499 starting a sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 inhibitor (SGLT2i); and 191,209 starting sulfonylurea therapy. <\/p>\n The researchers found that the numbers of patients diagnosed with thyroid cancer were 0.17 percent in the GLP-1 RA group, 0.23 percent in the DPP4i group, 0.17 percent in the SGLT2i group, and 0.20 percent in the sulfonylurea group. GLP-1 RA initiation was not significantly associated with an increased overall risk for thyroid cancer versus the other diabetes drugs in the modified intention-to-treat analysis (hazard ratio [HR], 1.24; 95 percent confidence interval [CI], 0.88 to 1.76). In the first year after GLP-1 RA initiation, thyroid cancer risk was elevated (HR, 1.85; 95 percent CI, 1.11 to 3.08) and was amplified in the overall as-treated analysis that restricted patients from analysis when therapy was discontinued or another medication was added (HR, 2.07; 95 percent CI, 1.10 to 3.95).<\/p>\n “These findings indicate that GLP-1 RA initiation was associated with new diagnosis of thyroid cancer only in the short term, likely due to increased vigilance and case detection rather than de novo pathogenesis,” the authors write.<\/p>\n Several authors disclosed ties to relevant organizations.<\/p>\n Abstract\/Full Text (subscription or payment may be required)<\/a><\/p>\n