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The ever-expanding incretin universe will be on full display at the upcoming American Diabetes Association (ADA) 2026 Scientific Sessions, with GLP-1-based therapies featured in seven of eight major clinical trial result sessions.

“We’re seeing a lot of excitement around the next generation of incretin therapies,” ADA vice president of research and science, Marlon Pragnell, PhD, told Medscape Medical News.

At the meeting, to be held from June 5 to 8, 2026, in New Orleans, major phase 2 and 3 clinical trial presentations will include new injectable and oral GLP-1 receptor agonist-based combinations and formulations for the treatment of type 2 diabetes (T2D), obesity, and/or other conditions including type 1 diabetes (T1D) and metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD).

Highly Anticipated Results for Retatrutide

Of particular interest, the full data will come out on the triple GLP-1/glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP)/glucagon receptor agonist retatrutide (Eli Lilly), Pragnell told Medscape Medical News.

It is arguably one of the most highly anticipated of the clinical trial presentations that will be held at the meeting as it has already made headlines in the national media.

Initial top-line data for the phase 3 TRANSCEND-T2D-1 trial of the triple incretin in people with T2D were announced in March 2026, while top-line data for the phase 3 TRIUMPH-1 trial of the drug in patients with obesity without diabetes were released in May 2026.

Conference planning Committee Chair, Mark A. Atkinson, PhD, noted that the dramatic weight-loss levels seen in GLP-1-based multi-receptor combination drugs — retatrutide produced up to 28% body weight loss in the TRIUMPH-1 trial — have led to some concern.

“When will enough be enough, what is the goal line, and how are we going to compare these agents?” he said. “Is it going to be about safety?”

In addition to retatrutide results, phase 1 and 2 results will be presented for a novel dual GLP-1/GIP agonist CT-868 (Genentech) for adjunctive use in people with both T1D and overweight/obesity.

“I think this is incredibly interesting and underscores the need for more adjunctive therapies in [T1D]. Any time we’re seeing actually dedicated trials it’s important,” Pragnell commented.

VESPER Trials: Berobenatide

Findings will also be presented from the VESPER-1 open label extension and VESPER-3 phase 2b trials of the once-monthly GLP-1 agonist berobenatide (Pfizer) for weight management in people with obesity. Results from the VESPER-2 trial — investigating berobenatide in people with both T2D and obesity — will also be discussed.

These follow previous presentations of the primary VESPER-1 trial data and early VESPER-3 trial data at Obesity Week 2025. The drug, then called MET-097, produced up to 14% weight loss with the potential for improved tolerability compared with other GLP-1s.

Earlier this year, Pfizer announced top-line results for the VESPER-3 trial, showing up to a 12.3% mean placebo-adjusted weight loss at week 28 in people with overweight/obesity without T2D. That study is ongoing to 64 weeks.

SYNCHRONIZE and SYNCHRONIZE-MASLD: Survodutide

The potential liver and weight management benefits of a dual glucagon/GLP-1 receptor agonist, survodutide (Boehringer Ingelheim), from the phase 3 SYNCHRONIZE trials will be also reported at the meeting. The SYNCHRONIZE-1 trial involves people with obesity without diabetes and the SYNCHRONIZE-MASLD trial involves people with both MASLD and obesity.

“Ten or 20 years ago, we rarely talked about liver disease in diabetes, other than its role in glycogen storage,” said Atkinson, who is also the ADA Eminent Scholar for Diabetes Research and Jeffrey Keene Family Professor in the Departments of Pathology and Pediatrics at the University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida.

“Now, with these new definitions of MASLD and MASH [metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis], and the just massive increase in liver disease in people with diabetes, it has become huge. There are no projections I’ve seen where it’s plateauing,” he noted.

REIMAGINE: Cagrilintide-Semaglutide

The latest data on the amylin analogue cagrilintide-semaglutide combination CagriSema (Novo Nordisk) from the REIMAGINE-1, 2, and 3 trials will be presented on Sunday afternoon. The three trials, respectively, involve the weekly injectable’s use as monotherapy in drug-naive people with T2D, a comparison with semaglutide or cagrilintide in people with T2D on metformin with or without and SGLT2 inhibitor, and as add-on for basal insulin-treated T2D.

Previous comparison trials showed that CagriSema outperformed semaglutide alone for glucose and weight loss in people with T2D, but it underperformed against tirzepatide for weight loss.

ACHIEVE: Orforglipron

A session on Monday afternoon will summarize phase 3 ACHIEVE trial data in T2D for the oral nonpeptide GLP-1 orforglipron (Foundayo, Eli Lilly), recently approved for weight management. Included will be data comparing orforglipron with dapagliflozin in T2D (ACHIEVE-2), with oral semaglutide in T2D in the ACHIEVE-3 trial, and with placebo as an add-on to titrated insulin glargine in the ACHIEVE-5 trial. Previous data comparing orforglipron with placebo for both A1c reduction and weight loss, in the ACHIEVE-1 trial, were presented at the ADA meeting last year.

While orforglipron was the first oral nonpeptide GLP-1 agonist on the market, it will soon have competition. A late session on Monday afternoon, June 8, will cover phase 2b data for AZD5004 (AstraZeneca), a novel oral small molecule GLP-1 for overweight/obesity in the VISTA trial and for T2D in the SOLSTICE trial.

Moving from injections to oral tablets will dramatically change the landscape for reducing burden and supply chain challenges, said Pragnell. Additional longer-acting versions will also reduce the burden on individuals, he added.

‘The Soup to Nuts of Diabetes’

“If you really want to know what’s going on in diabetes, you’ve got to go to the ADA Scientific Sessions. It’s everything — the soup to nuts of diabetes,” said Atkinson. “We’re working with 300 presentations and over 2000 abstract submissions across 24 categories. We have a committee of three dozen people who make this happen.”

A new ADA statement will be presented on the use of diabetes technology in primary care. Other sessions will address screening for early-stage T1D and the latest in new T1D therapeutics, AI in diabetes care, nutrition, lipids, cardiovascular disease risk, diabetic foot care, behavioral intervention, and access to care.

The AIDING trial, to be presented on Sunday morning, June 7, will examine efficacy and safety of using AID systems in the hospital. The session will also address the building of nursing and workflow integrations and implications for inpatient care.

Four other sessions will update guidance on the management of T1D, T2D, obesity, and the overall ADA Standards of Care in Diabetes.

Hot-topic debates include whether muscle loss with GLP-1s is “a real concern or much ado about nothing;” whether or not peripheral arterial disease screening should be performed in all patients with diabetes, including those who are asymptomatic and apparently healthy; sequential addition vs simultaneous initiation of therapies for diabetic kidney disease; and whether AI should be immediately integrated into healthcare delivery systems, considering costs, quality, and clinician burnout.

“At the ADA meeting, we are committed to debates. When we poll meeting attendees about what they like and don’t like, they tell us they love the debates,” Atkinson noted.

Pragnell pointed out that the ADA meeting also spans the research spectrum, from basic science to translational to clinical, and the meetings each year offer an opportunity to watch that progression.

“One thing about the Scientific Sessions is not just the late breaking trials but how we got here and how the science evolves…You see it in the various posters, abstract presentations, and symposia…all the amazing research and people coming here to think, listen, and add their bit, then to connect, collaborate, and move the field forward. That’s why it’s so important to attend the Scientific Sessions.”

Atkinson reported serving on advisory panels for Endsulin and Sernova; being a board member for Diamyd Medical; being a consultant for Minutia, Quell Therapeutics, SAB Therapeutics, and Vertex; being on the speaker’s bureau for Sanofi; and being a stock/shareholder of Diamyd Medical. Pragnell reported having no disclosures.

Miriam E. Tucker is a freelance journalist based in the Washington, DC, area. She is a regular contributor to Medscape, with other work appearing in the Washington Post, NPR’s Shots blog, and Diatribe. She is on X @MiriamETucker and BlueSky @miriametucker.bsky.social.