Lilly points to long-lasting weight loss with orforglipron
One criticism of injectable weight-loss drugs is that people tend to put the pounds back on after they stop taking them. Could a new generation of oral therapies address that issue?
One of the companies developing oral GLP-1 agonist therapies for obesity, Eli Lilly, has offered new data to suggest that this might be the case.
In the ATTAIN-MAINTAIN study of its orforglipron candidate, switching to the drug after 72 months of injectable treatment with Lilly's Zepbound (tirzepatide) or Novo Nordisk's Wegovy (semaglutide) allowed patients to keep the weight off.
According to Lilly, it is the first study to look at oral maintenance therapy with a GLP-1 drug in this way, and could provide a way to facilitate long-term weight-loss therapy without needing to have weekly injections.
Lilly has recently filed for approval of orforglipron as a treatment of obesity, with the FDA due to carry out a speedy review under the national priority voucher scheme, while Novo Nordisk is waiting for a decision on its oral version of Wegovy around the end of this year.
ATTAIN-MAINTAIN met the primary endpoint of superior maintenance of body weight reduction compared to placebo. From a starting average weight of 113.5 kg in the Wegovy group and 115.8 kg in the Zepbound group, patients had seen their weight fall to 95 kg and 90.9%, respectively, as they switched to orforglipron. A year later, both groups were being maintained at an average weight of 95.9 kg.
"Obesity is a chronic, progressive disease, and sustaining weight loss remains a significant challenge for many," commented Lilly's head of cardiometabolic health, Kenneth Custer, adding that orforglipron "helped people maintain the weight they worked hard to lose."
CagriSema filed with FDA
Meanwhile, Novo Nordisk said today that it has submitted CagriSema, a once-weekly injectable formulation of semaglutide and amylin agonist cagrilintide, as a weight loss therapy for overweight or obese patients with at least one weight-related health condition.
The filing – which comes a little earlier than expected – is based on the REDEFINE 1 and 2 studies, which showed that 40% of people taking CagriSema achieved a body weight reduction of 25%, while 23% lost at least 30%. The data fell short of some observers' expectations, but analysts are still predicting that it could make sales of $7 billion or more per year at peak.
