Global Courant
STORY: Pfizer said on Monday (June 26) that it is scrapping development of the obesity and diabetes drug lotigliprone to focus on other treatments.
That’s while the drugmaker is racing to develop a rival for weight-loss drugs from Danish company Novo Nordisk, which have seen huge demand.
Pfizer said it chose to discontinue the drug after results showed elevated levels of liver enzymes in patients during clinical trials.
It will now focus on its other weight loss drug, danuglipron.
Recent studies show that it helped type 2 diabetes patients lose weight on par with rivals in a mid-stage study.
Pfizer said it would finalize plans for the late phase study of danuglipron by the end of 2023.
Drugmakers are racing to target the weight loss market, which is estimated to reach $100 billion by the end of the decade.
And Novo Nordisk is already testing a high-dose oral version of semaglutide, the drug behind the Ozempic and Wegovy brands.
Late-stage studies found that the obesity pill helped patients lose 15% of their body weight.
The company is struggling to keep up with the huge demand for Ozempic and Wegovy, which are sold as a weekly injection.
It plans to seek approval for the pill version later this year and said market launch has yet to be determined.
