Weight loss
Acmopatide met the main goal of a Phase 2 study in type 1 diabetes, but Roche is axing the investigational drug to prioritize enicepatide for weight loss, type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular outcomes. Both assets come from the $2.7 billion buy of Carmot Therapeutics.
With weight loss topping 20% at 80 weeks in the Phase 3 TRIUMPH-2 and TRIUMPH-3 trials, Eli Lilly plans to file for retatrutide’s approval in the first quarter of 2027. Previously a filing was expected later this year.
Kalohexis is working on peptide therapies, including one for obesity that could offer an alternative approach to the GLP-1s that currently dominate the weight loss space.
Eli Lilly’s weight-loss franchise—including the tirzepatide products Mounjaro and Zepbound, and the weight-loss pill Foundayo—is projected to account for nearly half of the total sales of the top 10 drugs in 2032.
Rhythm Pharmaceuticals’ Imcivree reduced fat—while boosting muscle—in patients with Prader-Willi syndrome.
Eli Lilly and obesity rival Novo Nordisk stole the show at the American Diabetes Association conference, though plenty of other companies also had data to show for their own weight loss assets; GSK strikes the biggest traditional pharma buyout of 2026; and FDA initiatives still lack clarity.
AstraZeneca is pushing its small molecule GLP-1 drug to Phase 3 development for weight control, diabetes and other cardiometabolic conditions despite the asset failing to best one from Structure Therapeutics.
Newly approved weight loss pill Foundayo reduced blood sugar more than Novo Nordisk’s semaglutide and other comparators in multiple Phase 3 type 2 diabetes trials. Eli Lilly will seek approval in this indication.
Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly presented data extolling the benefits of their relative weight loss therapies in obesity-linked indications, while analysts at BMO Capital Markets were “encouraged” by the strategy communicated by Novo management.
While survodutide’s 16.6% overall weight loss was underwhelming, Boehringer Ingelheim and Zealand Pharma’s drug achieved “impressive” fat loss, according to BMO Capital Markets.
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