GLP-1 RAs and the Future of Cardiology, with Christian Ruff, MD, MPH

The rising star of the medical industry, cardiology has seen progress over the last few years that most other specialties would not see for decades. From FDA approvals to improvements to diagnosis and treatment methods, the constant growth shows no signs of slowing.

These advancements have culminated in the American College of Cardiology (ACC) 2025 Annual Scientific Sessions. Featuring over 4,750 abstracts and 1,300 expert faculty over 300 sessions, the Chicago conference covered 53 late-breaking clinical trials during its March 29-31 run.

A leading expert in the field, Christian T. Ruff, MD, MPH, Director of General Cardiology in the Cardiovascular Division at Brigham and Women's Hospital, sat down with HCPLive's editorial team to discuss upcoming trials and his expectations for the rest of 2025.

HCPLive: What are you looking forward to in cardiology for the rest of 2025?

Ruff: Yeah, it's certainly exciting. There are so many incredible therapeutic areas. My takeaway from ACC, the thing I'm the most excited about outside of anticoagulation, which I care passionately about, is that I'm just blown away [by] the additional data for the GLP-1 receptor agonist. I mean, the ability of these drugs to modify kidney disease, heart failure, coronary atherosclerosis, peripheral vascular disease, and reduce weight. It's just a remarkable opportunity for us to improve the cardiometabolic health - health in general - of our population. And so I'm really excited about the data presented today [at ACC], and obviously at the upcoming conferences. It's just huge. I think enthusiasm for this field will really mark a paradigm shift in how we treat the global part of metabolic health of these patients. So I'm really excited about those classes of therapies.

Relevant disclosures for Ruff include Anthos Therapeutics, AstraZeneca, Bayer, Janssen, Novartis, and others.