US approves Wegovi weight loss pill, a move that could transform health care
A pill version of the popular GLP-1 weight loss drug Vegovy has been given the green light for use in the US, here’s what it means for health care
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Weight loss pills that use the same mechanism as the hugely popular drugs Vegov and Ozempic are coming to the US
On Monday, Novo Nordisk announced that the US Food and Drug Administration allowed It is an oral glucagonlike peptide 1 (GLP-1) medication for weight loss and obesity in adults.
It’s a milestone for the industry, which has struggled for years to create an effective pill version of the weight-loss injection. Daniel Drucker, an endocrinologist at the University of Toronto who previously consulted for Novo Nordisk, says most people feel more comfortable taking a pill than getting a regular injection. “It’s a good thing for people to have more options,” he says. Plus, pills can greatly improve access to medication by reducing costs — injections can cost hundreds of dollars a month out of pocket.
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“The pills are also easier to transport and produce,” says Rosalina McCoy, an endocrinologist and internist at the University of Maryland. He said he hopes the new FDA approval will increase access to the drug.
Before that approval, Novo Nordisk, which also makes the injectable semaglutide drugs Ozempic and Vegovy, had seen promising results from its own trials of the weight-loss pill, which will also be sold under the brand name Vegovy. In the company’s latest Phase 3 clinical trial, the highest dose of the pill resulted in 16.6 percent weight loss in 64 weeks In comparison, there was a loss of 2.7 percent in those taking placebo. For comparison, trials of 2.4 mg Vegovy injection showed Weight loss up to 17.4 percent(The injection and the pill were not compared in a head-to-head trial,)
GLP-1 drugs have transformed the weight loss industry and revolutionized the treatment of metabolic disease. But so far, they have been available largely only in injectable form in the US. Novo Nordisk’s pill, Rybelsus, for type 2 diabetes was approved by the FDA in 2019. But oral versions of these drugs have not become popular in the same way as injections, despite Even the initial data Weight loss and health benefits have been shown to be relatively comparable.
The Wegovi pill, taken once a day, works in the same way as the weekly injection – mimicking the activity of a gut hormone that slows down the emptying of people’s stomach and makes them feel full. People who take pills eat less overall. Side effects are largely similar to those of injecting the drug, and may include nausea, diarrhea, and vomiting.
The tablets should also be taken on an empty stomach to work effectively.
“Nothing can be taken by mouth for at least 30 minutes to allow the drug to be absorbed into the bloodstream,” says endocrinologist John Buse of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, a consultant and investigator for Novo Nordisk. “If patients take the medication with other medications, food or even excess water or coffee, the effectiveness is dramatically reduced.”
The pill will be available in U.S. pharmacies and select telehealth providers in early January, a Novo Nordisk spokesperson said. scientific American. It is estimated that a starting dose of 1.5 mg will cost $149 per month out of pocket, but this may be less depending on the person’s insurance.
McCoy says importantly, Novo Nordisk’s latest clinical trial success was based on a maximum daily dose of 25 mg. Unlike injections, which enter the bloodstream directly, the pills are broken down in the stomach, which means “the oral dose has to be much higher” than the Vegovy injection, which is 2.4 milligrams, McCoy explains.
She says, “I expect that the effective dose of oral Vegovy will be much more expensive than the advertised $149. But I would love to see this drug become more affordable.”
Novo Nordisk spokesperson said scientific American Higher dose prices will be shared in the new year. “We believe this is the most affordable self-pay price yet for GLP-1 for weight loss,” the spokesperson said.
Other companies are working on their own weight-loss pills: Eli Lilly, which makes Zepbound, is developing a GLP-1 pill, orforgliprone, for weight loss and type 2 diabetes. FDA approval expected for March 2026. Drucker says more pill options — coupled with other effective versions of these drugs in the pipeline — will open up the market and hopefully drive down prices.
“I think we’re going to go from these two main (injectable) options from Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly to a half-dozen options in this class of drugs over the next 12 to 18 months,” Drucker says. “It will only be good for people. They will have more choices.”
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