Eli Lilly said on Wednesday its experimental next-generation obesity drug, retatrutide, outperformed Novo Nordisk’s Ozempic on blood sugar control and delivered more than double the weight loss in a diabetes study.
The data further strengthens the competitive profile of retatrutide, which is widely expected to fuel Lilly’s next wave of growth following the success of its Zepbound and Mounjaro.
In previous studies, the drug has already shown bariatric-surgery level of weight loss in patients with obesity, likely positioning it to be the most powerful drug in the booming market.
Commonly nicknamed “triple-G”, the once-weekly retatrutide activates GLP-1, GIP and glucagon hormone receptors.
Triple-G drugs are expected to deliver greater weight loss than earlier generations by combining appetite suppression, blood sugar control and increased calorie burning.
The head-to-head trial compared 9 mg and 12 mg doses of retatrutide with a 2 mg dose of Novo’s diabetes drug Ozempic. Lilly said the trial used the 2 mg dose as a comparator since it is the highest approved dose available.
Both doses of retatrutide lowered A1C, a measure of blood sugar over time, by an average of 2.2% compared with Ozempic’s 1.8% at 80 weeks in the late-stage trial.
Those taking the higher dose of retatrutide lost 20.9% of their weight compared with 9.4% on Ozempic.
“Overall, the data reaffirm retatrutide’s differentiated efficacy across weight and glycemic control, strengthening its position as a key long-term cardiometabolic growth driver,” said Citi analyst Geoffrey Meacham.
Retatrutide also delivered greater improvements than Ozempic across certain cardiovascular risk factors.
The most common side effects with retatrutide were, however, gastrointestinal issues such as nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. About 7.9% of patients receiving the highest dose of retatrutide stopped treatment, versus 2.7% in the Ozempic arm.
Lilly plans to seek approval for retatrutide in the US next year. It will present detailed results from the study at a future medical meeting.
In another key late-stage study, Lilly is testing retatrutide against tirzepatide, the active ingredient in Zepbound, among adults with obesity with or without type 2 diabetes.
