On 9 June 2026, AstraZeneca reported results from two phase 2 trials of elecoglipron (AZD5004), an investigational oral small-molecule GLP-1 receptor agonist taken once daily without food or fluid restrictions. The data were published in The Lancet and presented at the American Diabetes Association Scientific Sessions (5-8 June, New Orleans). The company said it will advance the compound into a phase 3 programme in obesity and type 2 diabetes in the second half of 2026.
VISTA, a phase 2 dose-ranging trial in adults with obesity or overweight and at least one weight-related condition but without diabetes, reported mean weight loss of 10.5% at 26 weeks versus 0.6% on placebo, rising to 11.8% at 36 weeks versus 0.3% on placebo. AstraZeneca reported that 88.8% of participants on elecoglipron achieved at least 5% weight loss at 26 weeks, alongside improvements in blood pressure and C-reactive protein.
SOLSTICE, a phase 2b trial in adults with type 2 diabetes, reported a 1.9-percentage-point reduction in HbA1c from baseline at 26 weeks versus 0.2 points on placebo, with 90% of participants on the top dose reaching HbA1c below 7% and 85% reaching 6.5% or lower. Mean weight loss in SOLSTICE was 7.7% at 26 weeks versus 1.7% on placebo. Adverse events across both trials were described as predominantly gastrointestinal and mild to moderate in severity, consistent with the GLP-1 receptor agonist class.
An oral small-molecule GLP-1 is significant because it could be manufactured and distributed more cheaply and at larger scale than injectable peptides. Elecoglipron follows Eli Lilly's orforglipron, which reported pivotal phase 3 obesity data in 2025, as the second such candidate to reach late-stage development. Two earlier Pfizer oral GLP-1 candidates, lotiglipron and danuglipron, were discontinued after liver-enzyme signals, underscoring that hepatic safety is a class-specific question that only larger phase 3 datasets can resolve.
AstraZeneca said the phase 3 programme will comprise the EMBOLD trials in obesity and the ELUMINATE trials in type 2 diabetes, the latter testing elecoglipron both as monotherapy and in combination with the SGLT2 inhibitor dapagliflozin. Elecoglipron remains investigational and is not approved for any indication. Phase 2 results are dose-finding and do not establish the long-term efficacy or safety that phase 3 trials are designed to test.