Amycretin: Obesity Buzz of the Day at EASD

The obesity buzz of the day at EASD annual meeting is clearly amycretin. Amycretin is a new oral medication under study for obesity that activates both GLP-1 and amylin receptors. The excitement came because this is the first public presentation of clinical data on amycretin.

This news is impressive on two counts. First, the dosage form is a once daily tablet. Not an injection. Second, the effectiveness was impressive. In just 12 weeks, patients receiving the higher of two doses tested ( 2 x 50 mg) lost 13% of their starting body weight. At that point, the weight loss trajectory was still a straight line, suggesting that longer studies may show greater weight loss over time.

Enthusiasm About Early and Thin Data

Novo Nordisk is very positive about these early results. Martin Holst Lange, Executive VP of development for the company, said:

“This is one of the most promising biologies that we’ve seen in a number of years. Obviously GLP-1, specifically the longer-acting GLP-1s, have changed the field of obesity and diabetes. And when we combine the GLP-1 and the amylin biology, there is a potential to see even further weight loss.”

Investors took the cue and gave the stock price a four percent boost yesterday following this news.

But let’s remember. These are just phase 1 data, with only 16 patients tested at each of the two dosing levels. There will be a lot to learn about this drug and we certainly hope that it’s all good news.

If you want a reminder that this buzz about amycretin for obesity is very speculative, take a look at the Roche share price. Back in July, it jumped when the company said their oral obesity medicine was showing good results. Yesterday, it dropped by six percent as investors learned that those results were based on only six patients per dosing group. Fortune is fickle

A Long and Bumpy Road to Better Lives

It is abundantly clear, though, that better drugs are on the way for treating obesity. Will amycretin be the next blockbuster? Maybe or maybe not. As more and better obesity medicines progress toward approval a few years from now, disappointment will mix with breakthroughs.

But already, we have good options for obesity care in semaglutide, tirzepatide, and a host of older drugs. On top of that, metabolic surgery and support for healthy lifestyles are excellent tools for achieving better health.

The trouble is that our health systems are terrible at delivering this care. Health professionals are neither well-trained nor encouraged to do it. Health insurance plans make a sport of denying access to most people who need this care. Lilly and Novo Nordisk add to the problem with high prices and short supplies.

So we take the news of great new medicines for obesity with a grain of salt. We all have work to do before their promise will unfold into the reality of better, healthier lives.

Click here for the abstract of the new data on amycretin and here for the presentation at EASD 2024. For further reporting on this news, click here and here.

Italian Bee on White Sweet Clover, photograph by Ivar Leidus, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0

Subscribe by email to follow the accumulating evidence and observations that shape our view of health, obesity, and policy.

September 12, 2024