Advances in therapyApr 20, 2020

Comparing the long-term cost-effectiveness of weekly semaglutide and daily liraglutide for treating type 2 diabetes in the UK

GLP-1 Therapies Weekly Brief ↗PubMed ↗DOI ↗OA ↗

Updated Mar 28, 2026

Abstract

Once-weekly semaglutide 1 mg is associated with a lifetime cost saving of GBP 140 per patient compared to once-daily liraglutide 1.2 mg.

Once-weekly semaglutide 1 mg leads to an increase of 0.21 years in discounted life expectancy.
This treatment also shows an increase of 0.30 quality-adjusted life-years compared to liraglutide.
Clinical benefits of semaglutide are achieved alongside reduced costs due to fewer diabetes-related complications.
Savings are primarily attributed to a reduction in cardiovascular disease-related costs, averaging GBP 279 per patient.
Sensitivity analyses confirm the robustness of the cost-effectiveness findings.

Simplified

INTRODUCTION: Once-weekly semaglutide 1 mg is a novel glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist (GLP-1 RA) for the treatment of type 2 diabetes that has demonstrated significantly greater reductions in glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) and body weight than the GLP-1 RA once-daily liraglutide 1.2 mg in the SUSTAIN 10 trial. The present analysis aimed to evaluate the long-term cost-effectiveness of once-weekly semaglutide 1 mg versus once-daily liraglutide 1.2 mg from a UK healthcare payer perspective.

METHODS: Long-term outcomes were projected using the IQVIA CORE Diabetes Model (version 9.0), with baseline characteristics and treatment effects sourced from SUSTAIN 10. Patients were assumed to initiate treatment with GLP-1 RAs and continue treatment until HbA1c exceeded 7.5%, at which point GLP-1 RAs were discontinued and basal insulin was initiated. Pharmacy costs and costs of complications were measured in 2018 pounds sterling (GBP), with future costs and outcomes discounted at 3.5% per annum. Utilities were taken from published sources.

RESULTS: In the base-case analysis, once-weekly semaglutide 1 mg was associated with an increase in discounted life expectancy of 0.21 years and discounted quality-adjusted life expectancy of 0.30 quality-adjusted life-years, compared with once-daily liraglutide 1.2 mg. Clinical benefits were achieved at reduced costs, with lifetime cost savings of GBP 140 per patient with semaglutide versus liraglutide, owing to a reduction in diabetes-related complications, in particular cardiovascular disease (mean cost saving of GBP 279 per patient). Therefore, once-weekly semaglutide 1 mg was dominant compared with once-daily liraglutide 1.2 mg. The results of the sensitivity analyses were similar, demonstrating the robustness of the base-case analysis.

CONCLUSIONS: Once-weekly semaglutide 1 mg is a cost-effective treatment option versus once-daily liraglutide 1.2 mg, based on the SUSTAIN 10 trial, from a UK healthcare payer perspective.

Key numbers

0.21 years

Increase in Life Expectancy

Discounted life expectancy with semaglutide vs. liraglutide

GBP 140

Cost Savings

Lifetime cost savings per patient with semaglutide

0.30 QALYs

Increase in Quality-Adjusted Life Expectancy

Discounted quality-adjusted life expectancy with semaglutide vs. liraglutide

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Comparing the long-term cost-effectiveness of weekly semaglutide and daily liraglutide for treating type 2 diabetes in the UK

Abstract

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