Swiss pharma giant Roche is ‘fast-tracking’ development of an experimental Wegovy challenger pill for weight loss
Novo Nordisk, the Danish pharma giant, has seen its fortunes reach astronomical heights since its drugs, Ozempic and Wegovy, took off. Its shares have risen 432% in the last five years, and the company’s market cap far exceeds the size of Denmark’s economy—catapulted by the success of the weight-shedding injections.
The world’s biggest pharma companies have been attempting to find breakthroughs in obesity treatment to cash in on the booming demand.
There’s no shortage of challengers springing up, from Eli Lilly to Zealand Pharma. Now Roche, the Swiss giant known for its cancer drugs, could be the next drugmaker to see a windfall from weight-loss drugs.
Earlier this month, a study of an experimental pill developed by the company showed promising results on obesity patients. The trial, although limited to 25 participants, noted a 6.1% drop in weight within four weeks among obese patients without diabetes who took the drug CT-996.
Since the announcement, Roche’s shares have climbed roughly 6%.
Following the positive results, Roche plans to accelerate the drug development at a “significantly faster” pace than expected, the company’s CEO Thomas Schinecker told the Financial Times.
“Based on the encouraging data we reported earlier this month, CT-996 will be moving towards Phase 2 trials next year,” a Roche spokesperson told Fortune on Monday. “We are fast-tracking the clinical development of our obesity portfolio with the aim to bring these medications to patients faster than anticipated.”
A not-so-tough pill to swallow
Roche’s initial success comes at a crucial time as pharma companies battle for a slice of the weight-loss market, which is set to be worth over $100 billion by 2030. The Basel-based company inherited several drugs, including CT-996, following its acquisition of Carmot last year.
It has been attempting to turn its business around following a string of failed cancer and Alzheimer’s trials, and the burgeoning market for obesity drugs could be its wild card.
While CT-996 will be the company’s first weight-loss drug, along with another one in trial, Schinecker hopes it will complement Roche’s portfolio of allied drugs that address obesity-related conditions.
The market for obesity drugs is not an easy one to break into, given the clamor and fanfare surrounding it recently. But Roche’s CEO believes it has an advantage over Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy in scaling its pill as it’s made synthetically rather than with peptides, which are essential molecules that form proteins in the body. The drug could also potentially be a more convenient option compared to injectables, as the pill could be taken at any time of the day.
Schinecker told CNBC last week that the two drugs being developed to aid weight loss have “best in disease potential,” making it Roche’s answer to the frenzied obesity treatments like Zepbound and Wegovy.
However, that’ll not be without hurdles. Successful early trial results don’t always result in drugs hitting the market. Roche will also have to play catch-up to the industry’s first movers, like Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly, as they already have FDA-approved weight-loss medication on the market.
To Roche’s advantage, demand still outstrips the supply of such drugs—and as the market continues to grow in more countries, the Swiss giant could have a shot at success after all.
