Novo says CagriSema shows greater weight loss than Lilly rival in diabetes patients

Sept 21 — Novo Nordisk said on Monday its next-generation experimental drug, CagriSema, delivered an estimated ​average weight loss of 12.4% in a late-stage trial in patients with diabetes, outperforming Eli Lilly's rival drug.

It has been viewed as a ‌successor to Novo's blockbuster weight-loss drug, Wegovy, which faces patent expiries after 2030, and could help ⁠the Danish drugmaker claw back ground ​lost to Lilly in the fast-growing ⁠weight-loss market.

In a head-to-head trial earlier this year, the drug fell short ‌of Lilly's Zepbound on ‌weight loss, marking a setback for Novo.

CagriSema is a weekly injection ⁠that combines cagrilintide, which mimics pancreatic hormone ⁠amylin, and semaglutide, the active ingredient in Wegovy.

At Novo's capital markets day on Monday, the company detailed a multi-year rollout for its next-generation obesity injectables, targeting a launch of its CagriSema combination early next year.

Novo's U.S.-listed shares were down more than 4% before the bell as analysts ‌questioned the drugmaker's pricing power and dealmaking strategy ​ahead of looming patent expiries.

In the late-stage study, a 1 mg dose of Novo's drug CagriSema was superior to Lilly's tirzepatide at 5 mg for weight loss, the company said on Monday. Lilly's tirzepatide, the active ingredient in its diabetes drug Mounjaro and obesity drug Zepbound, showed a weight loss of 9.1%.

While the low-dose data is encouraging, the findings were ​less impactful given tirzepatide has already been proven superior to higher doses of Novo's ‌CagriSema in obesity, ‌said BMO ⁠analyst Evan Seigerman.

In patients with diabetes, Novo's drug also showed demonstrated non-inferior blood sugar reduction compared to Lilly's tirzepatide.

In another late-stage study, the drug showed a 21% weight loss at a 1.0 mg dose compared to placebo in adults ‌with obesity.

A decision from ​the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on ‌the company's application for ⁠CagriSema for weight ​management is expected in the fourth quarter.

(Reporting by Sriparna Roy in Bengaluru; Editing by ​Shinjini Ganguli)

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