Novo Nordisk’s obesity pill bests Wegovy in early trial

A pill being developed by Danish drugmaker Novo Nordisk may lead to greater weight loss than the obesity therapy Wegovy, the company reported Thursday, citing early data.

In a Phase 1 trial, participants experienced an average of 13.1% weight loss after 12 weeks of taking the experimental oral medicine amycretin, according to data presented at an investor meeting. In comparison, in an earlier Phase 3 trial of the injectable drug Wegovy, people taking Wegovy lost about 6% of their body weight over the same time period.

Novo Nordisk has been on a mission to capitalize on its success with Wegovy, which brought in $4.5 billion in sales last year. (The drug is also sold as a diabetes treatment under the name Ozempic. That version of the drug brought in another $14 billion in sales).

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