Announcing a coalition for large scale clinical trials of GLP-1RAs for addiction
A unique opportunity for a breakthrough in medicine and public health
Our organization, CASPR, is focused on advancing breakthrough strategies to solve addiction at a population level. The most urgent and exciting of these is the potential of GLP-1RA medications like Ozempic and Mounjaro to reduce addiction. Our review of the medical evidence is here.
CASPR believes that achieving an FDA indication of a GLP-1 for opioid use disorder (OUD) and alcohol use disorder (AUD) is the highest ROI opportunity in public health today. FDA approval would enable public and private insurers to cover treatment, opening up access to everyone who needs it. Success would dramatically change addiction medicine, providing patients and families, for the first time, with a powerful anti-addictive treatment that combines high efficacy, low side effects, broad addiction health benefits, wide patient appeal, unrestricted access with no risk of abuse, and no stigma.
CASPR has teamed up with the Allegheny County Department of Human Services, which has clinical sites and sector-leading data tracking and integration, to develop and advance a new coalition focused on this goal. Our leadership team includes Keith Humphreys from Stanford, Tom Hudzik from ALA+ Biopharma, Alex Jutca from Allegheny County, Lindsay Holden from CASPR, and myself.
Our group has received an initial planning grant and are beginning to assemble a scientific and operational team that will include leading researchers of GLP-1RAs for addiction in humans along with professionals experienced in managing large scale trials. We are beginning to meet with private funders to bring together staged funding for the effort.
Despite the alarming growth in overdose deaths, many philanthropists and foundations have avoided funding for addiction in recent years because it has been difficult to find funding opportunities with high impact. We believe there is a deep desire among funders to support long-term solutions to addiction if there is a strong case for impact.
Because the pharma companies with approved GLP-1s do not pursue addiction treatment, a large scale trial and FDA indication will not happen on its own. Without a strategic public effort along these lines, we may be waiting 10-15 years before a GLP-1 indication becomes available.
If we are successful in launching large-scale studies, this will be an unprecedented non-profit scientific endeavor, filling the gap between public research agencies and pharma, and collaborating with both along the way. We’re excited.
If you’re interested in the project and have expertise or resources that you think could advance the effort, we’d love to connect. If you would like to donate to the planning phases, we would appreciate your support. You can donate here or be in touch to discuss larger contributions.
For everyone, please join our free email list below for the latest updates as the project progresses, it should be exciting:
For more background on the medical and public health opportunity of GLP-1s and addiction, please check out these articles:
GLP-1 for Addiction: the Medical Evidence for Opioid, Nicotine, and Alcohol Use Disorder
To Solve the Addiction Crisis, We Need Strategies That Scale
Addiction medication sales will explode when better treatments arrive
27 patients describe how Ozempic and Mounjaro reduced their urge to drink alcohol
