Anti-obesity Pharmacotherapy and Inflammation

Pilot Study of the Effect of Weight Loss by Pharmacotherapy on Chronic Pro-tumor Inflammatory Cells

This study evaluates the relationship between weight loss, circulating inflammatory markers and lipids from 24 patients before and after 6 months of pharmacotherapy as a standard of care for anti-obesity treatment

This study aims to determine if weight loss by pharmacotherapy with liraglutide, semaglutide, or phentermine-topiramate promotes the reduction of pro-tumoral inflammatory cells Myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSC), simultaneously to the improvement of lipid profile (LDL-Cholesterol, HDL-Cholesterol, triglycerides, and free fatty acids) and concentration in the blood.

Liraglutide, semaglutide, and phentermine-topiramate are FDA-approved medications to treat obesity and obesity-associated comorbidities.

Twenty-four patients undergoing standard of care for anti-obesity treatment at VA Medical Center, and Tulane Center for Clinical Research (TCCR) will be recruited before initiation of pharmacotherapy as part of their standard of care and followed up to 6 months to compare the primary study variables.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Body mass index (BMI): over 30 kg/m2
• Age: 35 to 60 years old

Exclusion Criteria:

• Taking medications with anti-inflammatory properties like glucocorticoids, prednisone, or non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medications, such as aspirin or Motrin Subjects on medications for long-term weight management such as phentermine-topiramate (Qsymia), orlistat (Xenical), naltrexone-bupropion (Contrave), and the glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists such as liraglutide (Saxenda), and semaglutide (Wegovy).
• Prior history of cancer
• Having any clinical symptoms of systemic inflammation, acute infections such as Coronavirus disease 2019, or chronic diseases such as cancer, tuberculosis, autoimmune disease, and AIDS
• An adult unable to consent
• Prisoner
• Pregnancy or breastfeeding women