Weight loss pills, a Ozempic's big fan, and Merck's skin cancer drug

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Image for article titled Weight loss pills, Ozempic's big fan, and Merck's skin cancer drug: Pharma news roundup — Graphic: Images: Vincent Kessler, Arnd Wiegmann, Ida Marie Odgaard, Brendan McDermid

It may take a weight loss pill for Eli Lilly to finally meet demand for its popular anti-obesity medications, according to the pharma giant’s top leader on weight loss drugs. Denmark’s prime minister, Mette Frederiksen, called the Ozempic “fantastic” and said she was “huge fan” at a parliamentary debate. And Merck announced Monday that it’s pulling the plug on its trial of an experimental combination treatment for skin cancer.

Check out those stories and more pharmaceutical news highlights from this week.

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Eli Lilly says experimental weekly insulin works just as well as dailies

Eli Lilly’s experimental weekly insulin reduced patient’s A1C by an average of of at least 1% in late-stage clinical trials.

Image: Vincent Kessler (Reuters)

People who depend on daily insulin shots may soon have welcome news: a new experimental drug could cut their treatments down from daily doses to weekly ones. Eli Lilly announced positive result on Thursday of its phase-3 clinical trails (QWINT-2 and QWINT-4) for its weekly insulin efsitora. Trial results showed that the long-acting insulin was just as effective as traditional daily doses.

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An experimental weight loss drug helped users lose 18% of their weight in an early trial

All patients that were treated with CT-388 lost at least 5% of their weight, caption

Image: Arnd Wiegmann (Reuters)

Swiss pharma giant Roche posted positive results on Thursday of its phase-1 clinical trail for its experimental weight loss drug CT-388. Roche said that patients taking CT-388 lost an average 18.8% of weight after 24 weeks on the drug.

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Denmark’s prime minister is a ‘huge fan’ of Ozempic

Denmark's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen — Image: Ida Marie Odgaard (Reuters)

Danish pharma giant Novo Nordisk, the maker of the popular diabetes and weight loss drugs Ozempic and Wegovy, has a prominent admirer in its home country. Denmark’s Prime Minister, Mette Frederiksen, called the medications “fantastic” and said she was “huge fan” at a parliament debate, Bloomberg reported.

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A pill could solve the Zepbound and Wegovy shortage, Eli Lilly executive says

A U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) database says that most doses of Zepbound will be in limited supply through at least the end June, thanks to increased demand.

It may take a weight loss pill for Eli Lilly to finally meet demand for its popular anti-obesity medications, according to Eli Lilly’s top leader on weight loss drugs. “Even if we take the combined supply of our [medications] and the competition, it’s not sufficient to meet the needs of 110 million Americans,” President of Lilly Diabetes and Obesity Patrik Jonsson told Quartz in an interview.

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People taking the weight loss drug Wegovy are keeping the weight off for years, study says

Boxes of Wegovy made by Novo Nordisk are seen at a pharmacy — The list price of Wegovy in the U.S. is $1,349 for a month’s supply.

Two new analyses of the longest clinical trial of semaglutide — the active ingredient in Wegovy — have shed some light on the long-term effects of the popular weight loss medication.

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Johnson & Johnson is selling off its stake in the maker of Tylenol and Band-Aids

Kevnue produces and sells top brands like Tylenol, Listerine, Neutrogena, Zyrtec, and Band-Aid, it generated $15.4 billion in revenue in 2023.

Image: Bloomberg / Contributor (Reuters)

Kenvue, the maker of popular consumer health brands like Tylenol and Listerine, announced Monday that Johnson & Johnson is selling its remaining stake in the company. The reversal comes about a year after the healthcare giant spun off its consumer health business into Kenvue.

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Merck stopped a clinical trial for its experimental skin cancer drug after a high rate of side effects

Merck’s patent on Keytruda is set to expire in 2028.

Image: Brendan McDermid (Reuters)

Merck announced Monday that it is pulling the plug on its phase 3 trial of an experimental combination treatment for skin cancer after side effects of the medication led patients to drop out of the study.

Weight loss pills, Ozempic's big fan, and Merck's skin cancer drug: Pharma news roundup

Plus, Wegovy users keep the weight off, and Johnson & Johnson says goodbye to Tylenol