Obesity drug may prevent diabetes

A drug used to combat obesity might also help prevent diabetes, its manufacturers said yesterday.

A four-year trial involving 3,300 patients in Sweden has encouraged makers Roche to suggest that their Xenical capsules might fight two of the fastest growing threats to NHS bills at the same time.

Most people with type 2 diabetes, the most common form, are overweight so a drug that could tackle both conditions relatively cheaply would be regarded as a public health boon.

However it could take at least three years for the drug to go through the scientific and regulatory hoops needed to establish effectiveness and value for money in a new dual role.

Results presented to an international obesity conference in Sao Paulo, Brazil, indicated that overweight people using Xenical, in conjunction with exercise and diet programmes, were 37% less likely to develop type 2 diabetes than those not taking the pill.

Tony Barnett, clinical director of diabetes and endocrinology at Birmingham Heartlands hospital, said the Swedish trial, conducted at 22 centres, was encouraging. "More than 80% of people with diabetes are overweight and this trial shows that Xenical can be a key partner in slowing the tremendous increase in type 2 diabetes in this country."

Diabetes affects an estimated 1.4m people and is a growing problem. Many people might have type 2, the non-insulin dependent type, without having been diagnosed. It can often be treated through diet and exercise, but the condition puts people at greater risk of heart disease and kidney and eye problems.

The national institute for clinical excellence, the government body which considers the cost-effectiveness of drugs, has approved the use of Xenical, which reduces fat absorption through the gut, for adults who are obese and those who are overweight and have diabetes, high blood pressure or high cholesterol. The three-capsule a day dose costs less than ?537 a year.

Roche will probably wait until the full results of the Swedish trials are published next year before applying for a change in licence to allow the drug's use in preventing or slowing the onset of diabetes.