GLP-1s are associated with lower colorectal cancer incidence. Why that might be | 2026 ASCO Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium

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in this second segment of an interview with Managed Healthcare Executive (MHE), Colton Jones, M.D., of The University of Texas San Antonio, discussed why the GLP-1 drugs might reduce the incidence of colorectal cancer.

Jones spoke to MHE after presenting research at the 2026 ASCO Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium, held Jan. 8-10, in San Francisco, that showed that GLP-1s were 36% more effective at reducing the incidence of colorectal cancer than aspirin and even more effective in people who are at a higher risk of developing colorectal cancer.

Aspirin is not widely prescribed for colorectal cancer primary prevention but is prescribed for cardiovascular disease primary prevention. Jones and his colleagues conducted a retrospective study comparing the incidence of colorectal cancer among approximately 140,000 people who took GLP-1s with the incidence among a like number of people who took aspirin. The incidence of colorectal cancer was 36% less in those taking GLP-1s, Jones and his colleagues found.

The reason for the difference was well beyond the scope of this study, but Jones explained that preclinical data show that the GLP-1s inhibit the PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway, a common pathway in cancer pathogenesis. Notions that the GLP-1s’ anticancer effects might hinge on its effect on the PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway are based on findings from multiple studies, he said, including recent studies focused on breast cancer.