November 10, 2020 — Saxenda (liraglutide) is on the brink of becoming a billion dollar drug for obesity. Yet its effectiveness in obesity is modest. On average, a person taking it might expect that their weight would go down by about eight percent. Of course, some people will have a much bigger benefit. But others will have less or […]
May 14, 2020 — Yesterday the process of a slow reveal began. Novo Nordisk released the first pivotal results in studies of semaglutide for obesity. This new drug, already available for diabetes, has potential to bring us closer to truly effective obesity treatment without surgery. This was merely a first glimpse – topline results from only one of four […]
February 7, 2020 — The decade just past brought quite a bit of change in drugs used to treat obesity. At the beginning of the decade, options were few. Prescribing was almost nil. Now we have five new drugs for obesity. For type 2 diabetes, weight-sparing drugs have taken a dominant role in prescribing. One of those drugs, liraglutide, […]
April 2, 2019 — The Partnership for a Healthier American (PHA) came from a desire by First Lady Michelle Obama to do something about the ever rising levels of childhood obesity. It was the private complement to her Let’s Move! campaign. But here’s the thing. The word obesity was absent from the vocabulary of PHA. It’s been all about […]
March 26, 2019 — If you talk to researchers and clinicians deeply involved in the future of obesity treatment, you will find quite a buzz about a type 2 diabetes drug called semaglutide. It’s a cousin of the most successful new drug for treating obesity – liraglutide. Right now, both of these drugs are sold only as an injection. […]
August 17, 2018 — We’ve been waiting for this. More than a year ago, Novo Nordisk announced very encouraging early results with semaglutide for obesity. It’s one thing to read a press release. But it means a lot more to read the detailed results in a top tier journal. Today, we have that publication. Detailed Efficacy Data in Lancet […]
June 29, 2018 — Yesterday, we received a very welcome bolt of good news. Suddenly, the outlook for training a new generation of obesity medicine physicians looks much brighter. The Obesity Society and the Obesity Medicine Association have come together to launch the Obesity Medicine Fellowship Development Program. The goal is to build the framework for training more physicians […]
May 5, 2018 — Friday brought a perfect occasion to step back and appreciate a decade of progress in obesity research. Her Royal Highness the Crown Princess Mary of Denmark visited the obesity research center of Novo Nordisk in Seattle. Four years ago, that research center did not even exist. Today, it’s generating an impressive stream of new drugs. […]
December 6, 2017 — Late yesterday, a new, once-weekly injection for type 2 diabetes cleared the hurdle of FDA approval for sale. Semaglutide, will be available early next year in a familiar pen injection device. It will come in two doses: 0.5 and 1.0 mg once weekly. For people with type 2 diabetes it’s great to have a once-weekly […]
November 24, 2017 — Novo Nordisk is feeling bold. The company has long been a leader in diabetes care. But now, it aims to create obesity drugs that will match the effectiveness of bariatric surgery. CEO Lars Fruergaard Jorgensen told investors this week: We are making a bet on obesity, and we believe we can ride it based on lifting […]
