A global study reveals that a medication significantly reduces fat and scarring in the livers of patients, potentially lowering their risk of cancer or liver transplant. The research, published in The New England Journal of Medicine, involved eight hundred patients across 37 countries.

The study found that after a year and a half, 63 percent of patients receiving weekly injections of semaglutide, the active ingredient in drugs like Ozempic, showed no visible fat accumulation in their livers, and 37 percent experienced a decrease in scar tissue. This improvement is likely attributed to weight loss, with the semaglutide group losing an average of 11 percent of their body weight, leading to better blood sugar control and reduced liver inflammation.

According to Harry Janssen, professor of liver diseases, these weight-loss drugs have the potential to reshape the treatment of fatty liver disease. He noted that the number of liver transplants due to fatty liver disease has tripled in the Netherlands over the past seven years, now accounting for 20 percent of all liver transplants.

Fatty liver disease affects more than a third of the world’s population, often due to unhealthy lifestyles. While most individuals experience no issues, about 4 percent of the Dutch population develop inflammation that can lead to cirrhosis, where scar tissue impairs liver function. Janssen emphasizes that fatty liver is often a “silent killer,” with symptoms appearing only when treatment is less effective, estimating that hundreds of patients in the Netherlands die annually from fatty liver-related cancer or liver failure.

Notably, even the placebo group demonstrated improvement, with a third eliminating fatty liver, likely due to adopting healthier lifestyles during the study. The ongoing study, extending for over three years, aims to further assess the long-term health benefits of the medication, particularly in preventing liver cancer and transplants.

These weight-loss drugs, mimicking the gut hormone GLP-1, are demonstrating broader health benefits, with studies indicating a reduced risk of 42 diseases. Currently, in the Netherlands, reimbursement is limited to a specific group of patients.