The 96-week trial, published in The Lancet, demonstrated that the drug had no impact on symptoms, brain scans or disease progression in patients with Parkinson’s.
Parkinson’s, a degenerative brain disorder that affects 500,000 Americans, causes symptoms like tremors, stiffness and balance issues, and no treatment has proven effective at slowing its progression. While previous studies suggested GLP-1s might offer a treatment pathway, the large-scale trial failed to show meaningful results.
The setback casts doubt on the potential of GLP-1 drugs, primarily used for weight loss and diabetes, to offer treatments for brain diseases like Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s.
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