The future of cardiometabolic trials: From obesity to outcomes that matter

As obesity continues to reshape the cardiometabolic landscape, early-stage developers face growing pressure to generate decisive, translational evidence sooner. The condition is now widely recognised as a chronic metabolic disease with complex systemic effects across cardiovascular, metabolic, hepatic, and inflammatory pathways. In this environment, weight loss alone is no longer sufficient. Phase 1-2 trials are increasingly expected to deliver deeper biological insight to support confident development decisions.

On 12th May 2026 [14.00 BST, 15.00 CET, 9.00 EST] for a webinar on, sponsored by hVIVO, join two leading cardiometabolic experts – Professor Dr Thomas Forst, chief medical officer at hVIVO, and Esteban Jodar Gimeno Head of the Endocrinology Department at University Hospitals Quiron Salud Madrid – to explore how early development programmes can be designed to generate meaningful pharmacodynamic evidence alongside safety and pharmacokinetics.

The discussion will focus on practical approaches and considerations when selecting endpoints aligned to specific cardiometabolic comorbidities, involving relevant patient populations earlier in development, and integrating advanced metabolic, biomarker and functional assessments from pre-clinical planning through Phase 1-2 study designs.

What you’ll learn

• Why cardiometabolic trials must move beyond weight loss
• What meaningful endpoints look like in Phase 1-2 obesity studies
• How to align endpoints to specific cardiometabolic comorbidities
• When and how to involve patient populations earlier
• How smarter early-stage design can de-risk programmes and accelerate development

Who should attend

This webinar is designed for professionals involved in early cardiometabolic drug development, including:

• Phase 1-2 clinical development leaders and programme directors
• Translational medicine, early clinical, and clinical pharmacology teams
• Biomarker, clinical science, and endpoint strategy specialists
• Pre-clinical and translational strategy leads shaping first-in-human and early clinical programmes
• Medical, R&D, and portfolio decision-makers in biotech and pharma
• Teams developing obesity and cardiometabolic therapies across metabolic, cardiovascular, hepatic, or inflammatory indications

Gain practical insight into how leading experts are designing the next generation of cardiometabolic trials – and how selecting the right endpoints early can reduce late-stage risk, sharpen differentiation and accelerate development timelines.

Register now to secure your place and be part of the discussion shaping the future of cardiometabolic trials.

About the panel

Esteban Jódar Gimeno, MD, PhD is Head of the Endocrinology Department at University Hospitals Quirónsalud Madrid, overseeing services across three hospitals and two outpatient centres, and is Full Professor of Endocrinology at the European University of Madrid. An internationally recognised expert in metabolic and bone diseases, he has held senior roles within SEEN, SEIOMM and the European Society of Endocrinology. Professor Jódar has authored over 250 original publications, with more than 24,000 citations, and is a frequent national and international speaker. His research focuses on diabetes, obesity, osteoporosis and cardiovascular risk, with extensive experience in clinical drug development.

Chief Medical Officer — Professor Thomas Forst
Professor Thomas Andreas Forst is a board-certified physician in internal medicine and endocrinology with more than 30 years of experience in cardiometabolic research. He began his scientific career at the German Diabetes Research Institute and later held academic and clinical roles at the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, where he continues to contribute to medical training. Thomas has held senior positions at Eli Lilly, the Institute for Clinical Research and Development, and the Profil Institute Mainz, and has served as CMO at Clinical Research Services Germany. He has contributed to more than 300 clinical trials across obesity, metabolic disease, diabetes, lipid disorders, and cardiovascular disease, and is an active member of major diabetes associations. He has authored over 300 peer-reviewed publications and serves as Associate Editor of Endocrinology, Diabetes & Metabolism.

About hVIVO

hVIVO is a full-service early phase CRO offering end-to-end drug development services from preclinical consultancy through to Phase III clinical trials, including world leading end-to-end human challenge trials services. With decades of experience in rapidly delivering data for our global client base, our team brings together strategic insight and operational expertise to deliver a variety of clinical study types across multiple locations.

To support rapid study start-up and reliable delivery, our dedicated recruitment teams in Germany and the UK provide direct access to both healthy volunteers and patient populations. This is complemented by our integrated drug development consultancy as well as our infectious disease and immunology laboratories and biobanking services.

Learn more about how hVIVO is helping to drive innovation in cardiometabolic research through deep expertise, advanced diagnostics, and end-to-end clinical support.