Stratification of obese phenotypes to optimize future obesity therapy

Obesity affects 150 million people in Europe and 650 million worldwide. People with obesity are at a greater risk of health complications like heart disease, diabetes and cancer.

The aim of the SOPHIA project is to improve our ability to predict who will experience which complications, and who will respond best to different obesity treatments. Currently, this is not possible. Part of the project will focus in particular on the relationship between type 1 diabetes and weight, as a large proportion of people with type 1 diabetes is overweight or has obesity.

SOPHIA will link up and analyse data from different cohorts of people with obesity, and carry out in-depth qualitative studies with patients to identify their perceptions and perspectives on obesity diagnosis and treatment.

This will hopefully deliver insights on the variables that predict the risk of complications and responses to treatment.

People living with obesity will be involved in all aspects of the project via a Patient Advisory Board. Ultimately, the project results should provide the basis for treatment pathways that are accepted by patients, healthcare systems, researchers and clinicians alike.

More broadly, the project hopes to change the narrative around obesity, to make it more patient-centric and equitable and to underline that it is a chronic disease, not something people choose to live with.