US regulators on Monday gave the green light to a pill version of the blockbuster weight-loss drug Wegovy, the first daily oral medication to treat obesity.
The US Food and Drug Administration’s approval handed drug maker Novo Nordisk an edge over rival Eli Lilly in the race to market an obesity pill. Lilly’s oral drug, orforglipron, was still under review.
Both pills are GLP-1 drugs that work like widely used injectables to mimic a natural hormone that controls appetite and feelings of fullness.
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In recent years, Novo Nordisk’s injectable Wegovy and Lilly’s Zepbound have revolutionised obesity treatment globally and in the US, where 100 million people have the chronic disease.
The Wegovy pills were expected to be available within weeks, company officials said. Availability of oral pills to treat obesity could expand the booming market for obesity treatments by broadening access and reducing costs, experts said.
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About 1 in 8 Americans have used injectable GLP-1 drugs, according to a survey from KFF, a non-profit health policy research group. But many more have trouble affording the costly shots.