Abstract PR003: The combination of the glucagon like peptide-1 receptor agonist semaglutide and the progestin levonorgestrel is highly effective in preclinical studies of endometrial cancer
Authors: Leslie Kimberly K. , Hagemann Andrea , Thiel Kristina , Hagemann Ian , Mutch David , Devor Eric , Malmrose Paige 
Published: March 2024

Obesity is a major risk factor for endometrial cancer (EC), and glucagon like peptide-1 receptor (GLP-1R) agonists such as semaglutide may be helpful to achieve weight loss during conservative treatment or for EC prevention. Progestins such as levonorgestrel are effective in preventing or treating early-stage EC. However, better and more durable response rates could be achieved using combinatorial therapeutic regimens of well tolerated agents with the potential to enhance progestin effectiveness. We theorized that the combination of semaglutide and levonorgestrel would be useful as a novel treatment or prevention regimen and tested this hypothesis using EC cell lines, patient-derived organoids, and RNA-sequencing from patient samples. From the molecular perspective, EC cell lines, organoids, and tissues express GLP-1R as determined by both qPCR and Western blotting, and GLP-1R agonist treatment induces GLP-1R mRNA transcription through positive feedback mechanisms in EC cell models. Preclinical studies in 6 patient-derived organoid models of EC demonstrated the promising therapeutic effects of the combination of semaglutide and levonorgestrel on endometrial cell viability. Specifically, patient-derived organoids from grade 1 endometrial carcinomas were treated with progesterone, levonorgestrel, semaglutide, or levonorgestrel + semaglutide at drug concentrations of 100 nM for 72 hours. Multiple models demonstrated a significant reduction in viability in response to combinatorial treatment. Most interesting was the induction of not only the membrane GLP-1 receptor with treatment, but also the significant upregulation of nuclear and membrane progesterone receptors, PR and PGRMC1/2, respectively, indicating a positive feedback loop between semaglutide and progestins such as levonorgestrel. In addition, other steroid hormone receptor mRNAs such as the estrogen, androgen and mineralocorticoid receptors (ER, AR, and MR) were similarly upregulated. In these studies, we identify synergistic molecular crosstalk between the GLP-1R and steroid hormone receptor pathways with the potential to enhance the anti-cancer activity of semaglutide and levonorgestrel when combined. Future studies are aimed at testing this regimen in patients conservatively managed for atypical endometrial hyperplasia or low-grade endometrial cancers.

Citation Format: Kimberly K. Leslie, Andrea Hagemann, Kristina Thiel, Ian Hagemann, David Mutch, Eric Devor, Paige Malmrose. The combination of the glucagon like peptide-1 receptor agonist semaglutide and the progestin levonorgestrel is highly effective in preclinical studies of endometrial cancer [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Special Conference on Endometrial Cancer: Transforming Care through Science; 2023 Nov 16-18; Boston, Massachusetts. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Clin Cancer Res 2024;30(5_Suppl):Abstract nr PR003.