Efficacy and Safety of Semaglutide for Type 2 Diabetes by Race and Ethnicity: A Post Hoc Analysis of the SUSTAIN Trials

Context Variations in the prevalence and etiology of type 2 diabetes (T2D) across race and ethnicity may affect treatment responses. Semaglutide is a glucagon-like peptide-1 analog approved for once-weekly, subcutaneous treatment of T2D. Objective To compare semaglutide efficacy and safety in race and ethnicity subgroups across the SUSTAIN trials. Design Post hoc analysis of data from phase 3 randomized SUSTAIN 1–5 and 7 (pooled), and SUSTAIN 6 trials. Participants 3074 subjects (SUSTAIN 1–5 and 7) and 1648 subjects (SUSTAIN 6). Interventions Semaglutide 0.5 or 1.0 mg, placebo, or active comparator (sitagliptin 100 mg, exenatide extended release 2.0 mg, insulin glargine 100IU/ml and dulaglutide 0.75 or 1.5 mg). Main Outcome Measures Change in hemoglobin A1C (HbA1c) and body weight from baseline to weeks 30, 40 and 104, and other efficacy and safety endpoints. Results HbA1c was reduced from baseline by 1.0 to 1.5 percentage points and 1.3 to 2.0 percentage points, and body weight was reduced by 2.3 to 4.7 kg and 3.6 to 6.1 kg with semaglutide 0.5 and 1.0 mg, respectively, across race and ethnicity subgroups. Minor changes in blood pressure and lipid profiles were observed. Adverse events (AEs) were reported in similar proportions of subjects across trials. More Asian versus other race subgroups discontinued treatment prematurely due to AEs. The most commonly reported AEs were gastrointestinal disorders. Conclusions In this SUSTAIN trials post hoc analysis, semaglutide was associated with consistent and clinically relevant reductions in HbA1c and body weight in subjects with T2D, with minor variations in efficacy and safety outcomes associated with race or ethnicity.