(Bloomberg) -- Novo Nordisk A/S’s Wegovy helped treat an obesity-associated liver disease in a late-stage trial, potentially adding to its status as a weight-loss medicine that can treat and prevent several other conditions.
The trial showed that semaglutide, the main ingredient in Novo’s Wegovy, helped 37% of patients see an improvement in their liver fibrosis, while 62.9% achieved resolution of their liver disease, compared to patients receiving standard of care, the drugmaker said in a statement Friday.
The results were the first part of an ongoing late stage trial in 1,200 adults with metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis, or MASH, and moderate-to-advanced liver fibrosis. Patients took the maximum dose of Wegovy.
Novo said it expects to file for regulatory approval in the first half of 2025. The Danish pharmaceutical company will also present further details of the results at a scientific conference this year.
Proving that obesity drugs help with more than just weight-loss has been key to Novo and its competitors, increasing the pool of patients potentially eligible for their medicines and helping to prove the value of the drugs to insurers. Novo’s Wegovy has already been approved to be used to lower heart risk in people who are overweight or obese.
Boehringer Ingelheim GmbH, for example, hopes that trials for its experimental obesity drug called survodutide will show its benefits for patients with MASH and help it stand out.
A drug from Madrigal Pharmaceuticals was approved for the condition earlier this year. Madrigal shares jumped as much as 13% in New York to the highest intraday since July. Novo gained 1.5% in Copenhagen.
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