Weight-loss drug Wegovy cuts risks of heart attack, stroke by 20%: Study

livemint.com:

Bloomberg News reported on Tuesday. The findings came as a big boost for Novo Nordisk with its stocks touching as high as 16.7%. The demand for Wegovy is already high in the market with the company getting a hard time keeping up with manufacturing and the new study is expected to boost demand further.

The pharma company has attracted a lot of limelight after celebrities and key business executives endorsed its drugs for managing obesity and diabetes. The drug named Ozempic is used for diabetes while Wegovy works best for obesity. The report mentions that both drugs use the same active ingredient, semaglutide.

As per Bloomberg News, the Danish company said that patients with obese or overweight and with a history of cardiovascular issues taking the Novo drug were 20% less likely to suffer a cardio event than those who took a placebo. The pharmaceutical company stated its intention to seek regulatory approval for an extended indication of its product in both the United States and the European Union within this year. At present, the medications are exorbitantly priced, making them financially unattainable for numerous patients, with costs reaching more than $10,000 annually in the US.

Explaining the details of the study, the Bloomberg report said that it began in 2018 and more than 17,000 patients participated in the study from 41 countries. The special focus of the study was people above the age of 45 and a history of cardiovascular diseases. The fresh boost is expected to take the company forward with analysts expecting the sales of Wegovy to reach a whopping $14 billion.