Landmark partnership advances patient education, community engagement, and long-term metabolic health advocacy
Via GRAPHIC PLUS | MANILA, PHILIPPINES (May 25, 2026) — In a significant step toward addressing the growing obesity and diabetes crisis in the Philippines, leading healthcare solutions company Zuellig Pharma, formalized a new strategic partnership with Philippine Diabetes Support (PDS), a patient advocacy organization that institutionalizes patient-centered education and grassroots advocacy efforts for obesity and diabetes.
PDS is an organization headed by Arch Cynthia Duntz that supports individuals living with diabetes and related metabolic conditions.
The partnership builds on a landmark commitment established earlier this year between Zuellig Pharma and key medical organizations, including the Philippine Association for the Study of Overweight and Obesity (PASOO), the Philippine College of Endocrinology, Diabetes & Metabolism (PCEDM), the Philippine Heart Association (PHA), the Institute for Studies on Diabetes Foundation Inc. (ISDFI), Diabetes Philippines (DP), and the Alliance of Clinical Endocrinologists Philippines (ACE). With the inclusion of PDS, the coalition is expanding its focus beyond clinical alignment to strengthen direct patient engagement and community mobilization within the Philippines.
Zuellig Pharma and PDS will help educate communities and drive awareness around recognizing obesity and diabetes as chronic cardiometabolic diseases requiring long-term medical care — and not simply shaped by lifestyle choices.
Formalized through a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) signing ceremony, the partnership between Zuellig Pharma and PDS will strengthen the connection between evidence-based medical standards and the realities faced by Filipino patients living with obesity and diabetes. While earlier initiatives centered on harmonizing local clinical practices with international standards, this expanded effort prioritizes sustained public education and stigma reduction.
Key Priorities of the Partnership
1. Strengthening Community-Based Advocacy
Patient organizations will be integrated into nationwide awareness efforts, helping bring culturally relevant, practical health education to Filipinos in their everyday communities.
2. Destigmatizing Metabolic Disease
The coalition seeks to educate communities that obesity is influenced by complex medical, genetic, neurological, and environmental factors — and not simply a reflection of lifestyle choices, personal failure, or lack of discipline.
In conjunction with the partnership signing, a public lay forum was held to deepen awareness of obesity as a chronic disease and support more informed conversations around long-term metabolic health. The session featured Dr. Elaine Cunanan, President of PCEDM, who discussed the medical nature of obesity and Dr. Luz Katigbak, President of PASOO, who explored the behavioral and psychological dimensions of chronic weight management.
Speakers also cautioned against fragmented and unregulated treatment approaches, urging patients toward medically supervised, evidence-based care pathways and approved treatment options, including newer dual GIP and GLP-1 receptor agonists.
At the conclusion of the forum, representatives from Zuellig Pharma, PDS, participating medical societies, healthcare experts, and media reaffirmed their shared commitment to advancing a more compassionate and medically grounded understanding of obesity and diabetes to improve patient outcomes for Filipinos living with metabolic diseases. This forms part of broader efforts to build a more inclusive healthcare ecosystem – one where Filipinos are empowered to seek early intervention, long-term care, and stigma-free support for obesity and diabetes.
