Novo Nordisk announced on Tuesday that its obesity drug Wegovy showed clear medical benefits in addition to weight loss, according to a large late-phase study, Reuters reported, citing Agerpres.

The Danish drugmaker said the weekly injection reduced the risk of serious cardiovascular events such as stroke by 20 percent in overweight or obese people with a history of heart disease, beating expectations after early-stage clinical trials.

The results are significantly better than the 15-17 percent expected by investors and analysts before the data was released.

The study, called SELECT, involved 17,500 patients over the age of 45 without a history of diabetes. With this research, which began almost five years ago, we wanted to know if the weekly injection has any medical benefits.

The news sent shares of Europe’s second-most valuable listed company after LVMH up more than 10% to record highs. Over the past two years, shares have risen by almost 150%, Reuters notes.

Comparative study data show that Wegovy has “the potential to change the way obesity is perceived and treated,” Martin Holst Lange, Novo Nordisk’s executive vice president for development, was quoted as saying in the statement.

Novo Nordisk said it plans to seek regulatory approvals this year to expand the weekly injection liner in the United States and the European Union.

Detailed results of the study will be presented at a scientific conference at the end of this year.

“The potential to significantly change the paradigm of obesity treatment”

Sydbank analyst Søren Lontoft Hansen said the better-than-expected results would cause a stir among doctors who prescribe obesity drugs. “It could also make it more likely that players in certain markets will engage in dialogue about the possibility of obtaining Novo subsidies in some markets,” he said.

Richard Vosser, an analyst at JPMorgan, said: “We see this as a significant result that has the potential to significantly change the paradigm of obesity treatment, not only by increasing the period of use of the drug by the patient, (… ), but also by revolutionizing the way doctors treat early obesity, which could would increase the penetration (on the market) of obesity treatment and Wegovy in particular.”

“In the future (after a one-year treatment break), we expect that Novo will be able to use SELECT to obtain a diabetes prevention brand,” he added.

Dwayne Mellor, a nutritionist and lecturer at Aston University in Birmingham, said: “It is not known whether the change in MACE (which is a composite of various serious fatal and non-fatal cardiovascular events) is a result of significant weight loss in people. treatment with semaglutide or the effect of semaglutide itself. Given the current recommendations of countries such as Great Britain, up to two years of treatment with this drug opens the way to extending the duration of treatment.”

For Terence McManus, manager of Bellevue Asset Management, “this SELECT result far exceeds expectations. In addition to other benefits, based on the results, it would be a good cardiovascular drug. Cardiovascular events such as strokes are costly to healthcare systems (…), so reducing these events should contribute to pharmacoeconomic evaluations.”

This changed the market for weight loss drugs

Rita Hvalby, head of the Norwegian Medicines Agency, said: “We have up to 180 days to review new data, but we can’t say how long it will take in this case until we see how much material we get. “.

The increasingly popular drug has transformed the weight-loss drug market since its US launch in June 2021, attracting the attention of patients, investors and celebrities around the world and boosting Novo’s stock.

The injection helps patients feel fuller for longer and results in an average weight loss of about 15 percent when combined with dietary changes and exercise.

Read also:

• Obesity will increase due to the cost of living
• Effectiveness of new obesity treatment confirmed (study)
• The phenomenon of weight loss with drugs: more and more Romanians are asking doctors for a drug to treat diabetes, hoping that it will help them lose weight
• Ozempik and strange dreams. Those who use an anti-diabetic drug for weight loss say that they experience strange reactions at night