Lilly and Novo simultaneously filed applications for approval of new obesity drugs
They are different from the already-hit Wegovy and Zepbound
Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk submitted applications to the FDA on Thursday, December 18, for approval of new obesity drugs. If approved, these drugs could change the approach to overweight by offering more convenient forms of therapy and new combinations of active mechanisms. For investors, this is also an important moment: the obesity market remains one of the fastest growing in global pharmaceuticals.
Details
Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk, key developers of obesity drugs, filed applications for approval of new weight-loss products with a top U.S. regulator on Dec. 18, MarketWatch reported.
The Eli Lilly drug is called orforglypron and is available in tablet form for daily administration. In clinical trials, it showed an average weight loss of 12.4% over 72 weeks. In addition, according to new data from the company, orforglypron helped patients maintain their gains over a year compared to placebo, as well as maintain weight loss after switching from the injectable Lilly Zepbound or Wegovy from Novo Nordisk.
Novo Nordisk's next-generation drug CagriSema is a once-weekly injection that combines Wegovy with a prolonged analog of the hormone amylin, which is involved in appetite and satiety regulation. Clinical trials showed that patients taking CagriSema lost an average of 20.4% of body weight over 68 weeks, compared to a 3.0% reduction in the control group.
Why it's important
Both applications point to a shift in the treatment of obesity, MarketWatch notes. The experimental therapies, which are in clinical trials, aim to improve the efficacy of Zepbound and Wegovy or close the gaps that remain with those drugs. These include a more convenient pill form of treatment, reduced gastrointestinal side effects, and the development of drugs that help minimize loss of muscle mass.
CagriSema, if green-lighted by the regulator, will be the first combination GLP-1 product, i.e., containing more than one active ingredient, and orforglypron will be the first tablet in this class. Oral GLP-1 agents such as Lilly's Trulicity and Novo Nordisk's Rybelsus have been on the market for about 10 years, but they are only approved for the treatment of type 2 diabetes.
Although Novo Nordisk was the first to bring a best-selling drug to market, Eli Lilly is now considered the leader - both in terms of sales and strategic deals around its products. In early December, it was revealed that another new Lilly obesity drug called retatrutide helped patients lose up to 29% of their weight in a late-stage clinical trial - a result that outperformed Zepbound.
What about the stock
Shares of Eli Lilly, which in November became the first pharmaceutical company with a capitalization of $1 trillion amid record demand for obesity drugs, rose 1.5% in U.S. trading on Thursday. Novo Nordisk shares were down 0.5% in Copenhagen trading on Friday.
Since the beginning of the year, Lilly's market value has risen about 34%, while Novo Nordisk has lost about 45%. Bloomberg reminds us that the stakes for next-generation drugs are extremely high: in 2024, Novo's shares collapsed the most in history after the CagriSema injection showed less average weight loss in trials than the manufacturer had hoped.
This article was AI-translated and verified by a human editor
