Literature, guidelines and education for clinicians: curated, dated and linked to the source.
2237 studies (94 landmark), 12 trials tracked, 4 guideline documents, 3 educational videos. Updated 16 October 2026.
CETP inhibition targets cholesteryl ester transfer protein to reduce atherogenic lipoproteins, including LDL and apoB-containing particles. After decades of setbacks, new evidence has renewed interest in its potential to further reduce cardiovascular risk.
The class
Drug-target Mendelian randomization and observational genetic analyses in UK Biobank and the Singapore Epidemiology of Eye Diseases study found that greater genetically proxied CETP inhibition was associated with higher risks of advanced AMD (OR, 1.45; 95%…
Dalcetrapib
This study compared dalcetrapib and voxelotor for their effects on red blood cell rheology and hemoglobin oxygen affinity in sickle cell disease, using oxygen gradient ektacytometry to measure red blood cell deformability in normoxia and hypoxia and the…
Evacetrapib
Epidemiological studies link lower CETP activity to reduced Alzheimer's disease risk, but whether CETP inhibitors like evacetrapib, previously assessed only for cardiovascular disease, could affect Alzheimer's disease had not been tested. Using CETP…
The class
Using drug-target Mendelian randomisation, researchers tested whether genetically proxied cholesteryl ester transfer protein (CETP) inhibition is associated with intracranial aneurysms (IA), subarachnoid haemorrhage (SAH), and unruptured IA. Lower CETP…
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| Trial | Agent | N | Status | Registry |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PREVAIL | Obicetrapib | 9,541 | Active, not recruiting; primary completion November 2026 | NCT05202509 |
| REVEAL | Anacetrapib | 30,449 | Completed 2017; positive, drug discontinued anyway | NCT01252953 |
| ACCELERATE | Evacetrapib | 12,092 | Terminated for futility, 2015 | NCT01687998 |
| dal-OUTCOMES | Dalcetrapib | 15,871 | Completed 2012; neutral | NCT00658515 |
| dal-GenE | Dalcetrapib | 6,147 | Completed 2021 | NCT02525939 |
| ILLUMINATE | Torcetrapib | 15,067 | Terminated December 2006 for excess mortality | NCT00134264 |
All 12 trials in the tracker · The agents
Not yet. On 24 July 2026 the EMA's CHMP issued a positive opinion recommending marketing authorisation in the European Union for obicetrapib as monotherapy (Ubeslo) and as a fixed-dose combination with ezetimibe (Evlarco). A European Commission decision was expected in the second half of 2026. No CETP inhibitor has ever been approved anywhere before this.
Once. REVEAL randomised 30,449 patients to anacetrapib or placebo on top of intensive atorvastatin and met its primary endpoint in 2017. Merck did not file, citing the modest absolute benefit and the drug's accumulation in adipose tissue. No other trial in the class has shown benefit, and PREVAIL, the obicetrapib outcomes trial, has not read out.
ILLUMINATE was stopped in December 2006 for excess mortality. The harm was traced to off-target effects on aldosterone, blood pressure and electrolytes rather than to CETP inhibition itself. The distinction matters: the drugs developed since do not share those effects, which is why the class continued at all.
On this evidence, no. Evacetrapib more than doubled HDL-C in 12,092 high-risk patients in ACCELERATE and the event curves did not separate. Dalcetrapib raised HDL-C by about a third in 15,871 patients in dal-OUTCOMES with no benefit. Both trials are usually cited as the end of the simple HDL hypothesis.
