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A doctor from the University of Palermo in Italy has published a case study of an adult cocaine user who experienced reduced withdrawal symptoms when given GLP-1 therapy. In the case study published in the Journal of Medical Case Reports , Doctor Vincenzo Maria Romeo reports on the treatment of an obese adult male patient with a history of cocaine abuse and how he responded to GLP-1 therapy. Over the past couple of years, GLP-1 therapies have taken the medical community by storm as they have been confirmed as drug-based therapies to lose weight.
The drugs Ozempic and Wegovy were initially developed for diabetic patients , but clinicians learned incidentally that the drug also helped people lose weight. More recently, doctors have noted that patients often report that GLP-1 therapies also offer relief from cravings other than for food, such as the compulsion to gamble or binge drink, along with reduced cravings for other recreational drugs . In this new case, Romeo reports on an adult male patient who came to him seeking help.
The patient was obese and had become hooked on cocaine after trying it to see if it would help him lose weight. After conducting a standard medical evaluation, Romeo and his team prescribed a GLP-1 therapy called semaglutide. After 12 weeks, the patient returned to Romeo's clinic for a follow-up.
The team found that the patient had lost approximately 12% of his body weight, as was expected. Then, because the patient reported a drastic reduction in cravings for cocaine, the team asked him to take a standard psychology survey assessment designed to quantify addiction cravings. It showed the patient experienced a 59% reduction in cravings .
The patient also reported feeling healthier overall, with more energy, less joint pain and a brighter outlook. The only downside was gastrointestinal distress, which the team readily treated. They suggest future research could determine whether GLP-1 therapies might be used for the treatment of a wide variety of drug addictions.
More information: V. M. Romeo, Use of semaglutide in a 54-year-old patient with cocaine abuse and weight loss: a case report, Journal of Medical Case Reports (2025).
DOI: 10.1186/s13256-025-05049-w © 2025 Science X Network.
