BeijingJune 14, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Currently, the burden of comorbidities from diabetes and cardiorenal metabolic diseases is increasingly severe in China, necessitating a breakthrough in the traditional single-disease diagnosis and treatment model. At the “CKM Full-Course Management Summit” held in Beijing on June 14, 2026, endocrinology experts jointly called for early initiation of multi-organ collaborative protection strategies in the treatment of type 2 diabetes to slow disease progression and reduce the risk of long-term complications.
As the world’s first and currently only incretin-based drug with three indications for diabetes, cardiovascular protection, and renal protection, NovoCare® (semaglutide injection) garnered significant attention at the summit.
CKM Full-Course Management Summit Scene
Focusing on CKM Full-Course Management, Emphasizing Human-Centric Multi-Organ Collaborative Protection
As the prevalence of diabetes continues to expand and patient survival significantly lengthens, the overall disease burden of diabetes-related complications in China is steadily increasing, showing a clear trend of extending from simple metabolic abnormalities to multi-system damage[1]. Data indicates that the overall prevalence of CKM syndrome in China has reached 83.7%[2]. Although over 70% are in the early stages (CKM stages 0-2), the proportion in stages 3-4 remains relatively high, and the risk of mortality significantly increases for patients in CKM stage 2 and above[3].
In recent years, metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), as a common comorbidity of diabetes, has also garnered widespread attention. The liver, as a core metabolic hub, plays a key role in the pathway from metabolic disorders to adverse cardiovascular outcomes. This summit further explored the management approach of expanding from CKM to CKLM (Cardiovascular-Kidney-Liver-Metabolic), emphasizing a human-centric concept of multi-organ collaborative protection, which imposes higher requirements on diabetes prevention and treatment strategies.
“Co-Management of Glucose, Heart, and Kidneys”: GLP-1 RAs with Cardiorenal Benefits Recommended as First-Line Therapy by Domestic and International Guidelines
The 2026 American Diabetes Association (ADA) guidelines and the 2024 Chinese Diabetes Society (CDS) guidelines both explicitly recommend that GLP-1 RAs with evidence of cardiorenal benefits (including semaglutide) can be used as “first-line therapeutic agents” for adult type 2 diabetes patients with atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD), high risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD), or chronic kidney disease[4],[5]. This implies that “heart-kidney-metabolism” should be managed simultaneously to allow patients to benefit early, and semaglutide is a core drug for achieving this treatment goal.
Professor Ji Linong, Director of the Endocrinology Department at Peking University People’s Hospital and lead investigator of the Phase 3 clinical trial of NovoCare® (semaglutide injection) in China, stated: “Diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and chronic kidney disease do not evolve independently but rather promote and progress together. Therefore, intervention must be moved forward, and strategies must be integrated. Semaglutide has accumulated comprehensive evidence covering CKM stages 1 to 4, systematically validating its multi-organ benefits across a broad patient population. This has tangible clinical significance for delaying the disease trajectory and reducing the burden of long-term complications.”
Dr. Cai Yan, Senior Vice President of Novo Nordisk and President of Novo Nordisk Greater China, stated: “The evolution of the CKM management concept reflects a deepening understanding of the nature of the disease. The comprehensive evidence system established by NovoCare® in the three areas of diabetes, cardiovascular protection, and renal protection is a crucial support for this concept moving from academic consensus to clinical practice. In the future, Novo Nordisk will collaborate with partners from all sectors to further build a chronic disease management ecosystem covering the full cycle and full chain, enabling scientific innovation to benefit Chinese patients earlier and more broadly, resonating with the ‘Healthy China 2030’ initiative.”