What the trial was testing
The VERIFY enrolled 2,004 patients with type 2 diabetes. The study was sponsored by Novartis Pharmaceuticals and tracked outcomes across the full group of patients who matched the trial's eligibility profile.
It was long-term safety (phase 4). Trials at this stage are designed to produce evidence regulators and physicians can act on — not just observations to follow up later.
What the results showed
Starting two diabetes drugs together cut the risk of treatment failure in half over five years.
Lancet (London, England) · 2019 · NCT01528254
These findings — that starting two diabetes drugs together halved treatment failure vs. one drug alone over five years — were published in the Lancet (London, England) and represent the headline result of the study.
Researchers tracked outcomes across 2,004 patients enrolled in the trial. The result was consistent enough across the group that the team felt confident reporting it.
What this means for patients
For patients with type 2 diabetes, this result changes the calculus on what to ask their care team about. Whether it changes day-to-day care depends on factors like disease subtype, prior treatments, and where the patient is in their care journey.
What you can do now
If you're newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, ask your doctor if starting two medications together makes sense for you. This approach kept blood sugar in range longer than the standard approach of starting with one drug and adding a second later. Both metformin and vildagliptin are FDA-approved for type 2 diabetes.
Eligibility for the treatments mentioned above depends on specific test results and clinical history. Bring this summary, the trial name, and your most recent labs or pathology report to your next visit.
Open type 2 diabetes trials
Surgical TreAtment for Obesity Related Disease and Onco-Metabolic Surgery
This is a prospective, multi-center, randomized controlled trial to compare Billroth II reconstruction versus conventional Roux-en-Y reconstruction versus long limb Roux-en-Y reconstruction for glycemic control in patients with concurrent type 2 diabetes and gastric cancer.
Nudge-Based Shared Decision Making and Self-Management in Type 2 Diabetes: A Randomized Trial
This study aims to test whether a communication strategy called "linguistic nudging" can help doctors and patients with type 2 diabetes make better treatment decisions together, and whether this improves patients' ability to manage their condition. What will happen in the study? - 250 adults with type 2 diabetes from Xiang'an Hospital (Xiamen) will be randomly assigned to one of two groups: Intervention group:Doctors will receive special training in "linguistic nudging" techniques to encourage shared decision-making. Patients will use a mobile app to record medication preferences, and doctors will adjust advice based on these preferences. Control group:Patients will receive standard diabetes care without these additional strategies. \- All participants will be followed for 6 months. What is the study aiming to find out? The main goal is to see if patients in the intervention group: Better follow medication plans Improve blood sugar monitoring Have better blood sugar control Feel more satisfied with doctor-patient communication Why is this important? Good self-management is key to controlling diabetes, but many patients struggle with it. Effective communication during shared decision-making may empower patients to manage their condition day-to-day with greater confidence. Patient safety and rights: Participation is completely voluntary All personal information will be kept strictly confidential Medical support will be provided if any health problems occur during the study Participants may withdraw at any time This research has been approved by the Ethics Committee of Xiang'an Hospital (Approval date: October 2025).