Dec 11 (Reuters) - Eli Lilly said on Thursday its next-generation obesity drug helped patients lose an average of 28.7% of their weight in a late-stage trial, outperforming its blockbuster drug Zepbound
and reinforcing the company's lead in the fast-growing market.
The global obesity market has surged in recent years on strong demand for GLP-1-based drugs like Zepbound and Novo Nordisk's Wegovy, prompting drugmakers to invest heavily in next-generation treatments that could deliver faster, deeper, or more durable weight loss.
The once-weekly injected drug, retatrutide, is part of a class known as incretins designed to mimic the action of the GLP-1 hormone, which helps regulate blood sugar, slow stomach emptying and decrease appetite.
The company, in its first late-stage trial readout, said the drug had delivered weight loss of up to an average of 71.2 pounds at 68 weeks, along with substantial relief from deep-aching joint pain when tested in participants with obesity and osteoarthritis of the knee.
Unlike GLP-1 agonists such as tirzepatide, the active ingredient in Lilly's Mounjaro and Zepbound, and semaglutide, the active ingredient in Wegovy and Ozempic from Novo, retatrutide activates three hormone receptors - GLP-1, GIP and glucagon - earning it the nickname "triple G".
Rival Novo is also developing its own "triple-G" weight-loss drug candidate UBT251 after securing global rights for the treatment from China-based United Laboratories International in a licensing deal.
There have been significant investor expectations around retatrutide after mid-stage data demonstrated up to 24.2% weight loss after 48 weeks, surpassing results seen with other obesity drugs.
Leerink Partners analyst David Risinger wrote in early December that a result exceeding the 22% weight loss seen with Lilly's tirzepatide at 68 weeks would likely be the bar of success.
The triple mechanism is expected to drive greater weight loss than tirzepatide, but cross-trial comparisons will be confounded by various factors, he added.
Lilly said on Thursday seven additional late-stage trials evaluating the drug in obesity and type 2 diabetes are expected to be completed in 2026.
(Reporting by Sriparna Roy, Mrinalika Roy and Christy Santhosh in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila)
