New real-world data from the ERS Congress 2026 (Barcelona)
Semaglutide was associated with up to a 40% reduction in asthma attacks, according to research presented at the European Respiratory Society Congress in Barcelona this week. The signal extended to COPD too, just less dramatically.
The study at a glance
Led by Prof. Chloe Bloom (Imperial College London) and presented by Dr. Bohee Lee, the team mined UK electronic medical records across four parallel studies, each looking at between 20,000 and 22,000 people who started a GLP-1 therapy or a sulfonylurea (the comparator diabetes drug). The design essentially asks: among people who already qualified for these meds, did the GLP-1 starters have fewer respiratory attacks?
What they found
- People with airways disease prescribed GLP-1s had fewer asthma attacks and COPD flare-ups than similar patients on other diabetes medicines.
- The effect was strongest with semaglutide, especially in asthma, with nearly a 40% reduction in attacks.
- Semaglutide was also tied to a 20% reduction in COPD flare-ups.
The mechanism angle
GLP-1 receptor agonists are already standard for type 2 diabetes and obesity, and prior research hints at anti-inflammatory effects that may improve lung outcomes, but asthma and COPD have never been included as endpoints in GLP-1 drug trials. This study is one of the first attempts to fill that gap with real-world data.
The important caveat
Bloom is clear this isn’t a green light to prescribe off-label. People with asthma or COPD should not start GLP-1s specifically for their lung condition outside current prescribing guidance (the signal needs confirmation in clinical trials). The takeaway is narrower: for patients already eligible because of obesity or type 2 diabetes, there may be a respiratory bonus.
Why it matters (the bigger picture)
Independent commentator Dr. Alexander Mathioudakis (University of Manchester) framed the real lesson: obesity and metabolic dysfunction are common in airways disease and often under-recognised as treatable problems. He called this one of the largest real-world studies on GLP-1s and airways disease, and one of the first to examine whether effects differ between individual GLP-1 agents. His pitch: start including respiratory outcomes, asthma attacks, COPD exacerbations, lung function, symptoms, quality of life, in future trials of metabolic therapies.
Bottom line for pharmacists
Metabolic health is respiratory health. This won’t change guidelines tomorrow, but it strengthens the case for treating obesity aggressively in your asthma and COPD patients and it’s a strong signal to watch as prospective trials get designed.
Source: European Respiratory Society, 8 Sept 2026. Presented data—not yet peer-reviewed publication.
