Wegovy treated a serious form of liver disease in a major clinical trial

The weight loss drug Wegovy treated a serious form of liver disease in about two-thirds of patients in a major clinical trial, according to the findings published Wednesday in the New England Journal of Medicine.

The weight loss drug Wegovy treated a serious form of liver disease in about two-thirds of patients in a major clinical trial, according to the findings published Wednesday in the New England Journal of Medicine.

Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease — previously known as nonalcoholic fatty liver disease — affects about 33% of adults in the U.S. About 5% to 7% have a more advanced form of the disease, called metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis, or MASH. (Another type of liver disease, alcohol-associated liver disease, is caused by drinking.)

Both conditions are the result of the body storing too much fat in the liver, said Dr. Sobia Laique, a liver doctor and the director of the Multidisciplinary MASLD Clinic at Cleveland Clinic. In people with MASH, the excess fat has started to cause inflammation, which over time can lead to scarring, or fibrosis. 

Left untreated, it can progress to liver failure and liver cancer, Laique said. 

Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease is more common in people with obesity or Type 2 diabetes, according to the National Institutes of Health. An estimated 75% of overweight people and more than 90% of people with obesity have the disease.