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Oral Obesity Drugs Race Heats Up as Industry Aims for $150B Market
7 Aug
Summary
- Weight-loss drugs expected to generate over $150 billion by early 2030s
- Oral obesity drugs in development to challenge injectable treatments
- Lilly's Orforglipron and Novo's oral semaglutide show promising results
The weight-loss drug industry is on the cusp of a major transformation, with the market expected to generate over $150 billion in revenue by the early 2030s. This growth is largely attributed to the rising popularity of injectable treatments, such as Eli Lilly's Zepbound and Novo Nordisk's Wegovy.
However, the industry is now witnessing a surge in the development of oral obesity medications, as several pharmaceutical companies aim to challenge the dominance of the injectables. Lilly's Orforglipron, a once-daily oral non-peptide GLP-1 agonist, has demonstrated impressive weight-loss results in late-stage trials, helping patients shed 12.4% of their body weight over 72 weeks. Novo Nordisk's oral semaglutide, a pill version of the company's injectable GLP-1 active ingredient, has also shown around 15% weight loss in late-stage studies.
Other players, including Structure Therapeutics, Merck, AstraZeneca, Roche, and Viking Therapeutics, are also making strides in the development of their own oral GLP-1 agonists and combination therapies. These oral alternatives could offer several advantages, such as easier manufacturing and potentially avoiding some of the supply issues that have plagued the injectable treatments.
As the race for the next generation of weight-loss medications heats up, the industry is poised for a transformative shift that could reshape the landscape of obesity management in the years to come.
