Wegovy at Higher Dose Achieves Greater Weight Loss in Trial
A third of patients lost at least a quarter of their weight, the late-stage trial showed
Novo Nordisk said that patients taking a higher dose of its blockbuster Wegovy obesity shot lost more weight than those on a lower dose without experiencing an increase in side effects, according to a new study.
The late-stage trial of semaglutide, which it markets as Wegovy to treat obesity, showed that those who took a once-weekly dose of 7.2 milligrams lost an average of 20.7% of their weight over 72 weeks.
A third of those patients lost at least 25% of their weight in the trial that was dubbed Step Up, it said.
Sydbank senior analyst Soren Lontoft Hansen said he was expecting an outcome of around 20% weight loss. Although it is a positive result, it isn’t super data, he said.
“This was more of an exploratory study. The higher dose will contribute to its portfolio and help cater to individual’s differing needs,” he said.
Shares were 4.1% lower in afternoon European trade as investors also digested news that semaglutide will be subject to U.S. government price negotiations that aim to lower the price that Medicare pays for certain drugs.
The Step Up trial was conducted to test the efficacy of the higher dose, as the current highest dose available is 2.4 milligrams. Those taking 2.4 milligrams lost an average of 17.5% of their weight in the trial.
Novo Nordisk said the higher dose appeared to have a safe and well-tolerated profile, consistent with other drugs of the same class.
The most common adverse events were gastrointestinal, the vast majority of which were mild to moderate and diminished over time, it said.
Patients in the trial didn’t have diabetes, but Novo Nordisk is conducting a second late-stage trial of the higher dose with obese patients who have Type 2 diabetes. Results are expected within the next few months.
The trial results come just weeks after the Danish pharmaceutical giant reported disappointing results of a closely watched clinical trial testing an experimental anti-obesity treatment. The company had hoped the two-drug combination, called CagriSema, would be the new best-in-class treatment by helping patients lose at least 25% of their weight. But the trial showed it achieved an average of 22.7% weight loss after more than a year’s treatment, roughly in line with Eli Lilly’s Zepbound, which is already available.