The positive results show that the shot reduced blood sugar levels by an average of about 2% in kids as young as 10, as well as a 10% reduction in body weight after a year of treatment. Plus: how GLP-1 drugs could help patients on antipsychotics live longer; the link between medical imaging and blood cancer in kids; and more.
Bloomberg: Lilly Seeks Mounjaro Approval For Diabetic Kids On Positive Study Results
Eli Lilly & Co.’s Mounjaro helped kids as young as 10 control their blood sugar and lose weight in a study that may give doctors another tool to fight childhood diabetes. The shot that’s been embraced by adult diabetics proved similarly beneficial for younger patients, reducing their blood sugar levels by an average of about 2%, according to results released at the European Association for the Study of Diabetes conference in Vienna. They also lost more than 10% of their body weight after a year of treatment. (Muller, 9/17)
More on weight loss drugs —
Medical Xpress: Antipsychotic-Treated Patients With Schizophrenia See Benefits From Semaglutide, Study Claims
A multicenter collaboration of Danish researchers reports that once-weekly semaglutide for 30 weeks lowered blood sugar levels and body weight and improved physical quality of life in antipsychotic-treated adults with schizophrenia and prediabetes. Cardiometabolic illness cuts life expectancy in schizophrenia, with lifestyle risks and barriers to physical care adding to the burden. Second-generation antipsychotics can accelerate weight gain and impair glucose tolerance. (Jackson, 9/17)
Fox News: GLP-1 Medications Could Cut US Mortality By 6.4%, New Study Finds
A new study has discovered that drugs for diabetes and weight loss could significantly reduce mortality for Americans. Researchers at Swiss Re, a reinsurance company in Zurich, Switzerland, released estimations that GLP-1 drugs could lead to a 6.4% reduction in all-cause mortality in the U.S. by 2045. (Stabile, 9/17)
Bloomberg: Lilly’s GLP-1 Pill Beats Older Novo Diabetes Drug In Head-To-Head Trial
Patients on Eli Lilly & Co.’s experimental diabetes pill lost more weight and had better blood sugar control than those on an older, approved rival from Novo Nordisk A/S in the first head-to-head trial of the two medicines. The highest dose of Lilly’s pill — called orforglipron — led to a 1.9% drop in blood sugar levels and shaved roughly 18 pounds from patients’ frames, significantly more than those getting Novo’s Rybelsus. (Muller, 9/17)
The Wall Street Journal: Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy Pill Shows Similar Weight-Loss To Its Shot, Study Finds
Novo Nordisk’s experimental daily Wegovy pill helped patients lose about as much weight as its weekly injection, according to data from a late-stage trial. The pill has already been sent to U.S. regulators for approval, with a decision expected by the end of the year, positioning it as the first GLP-1 pill approved specifically for weight loss. Production is under way in the U.S. (Chopping, 9/18)
In other pharma and tech news —
The Washington Post: U.S. Organ Transplants Corrupted By Greed And Bias, Whistleblower Says
In early 2020, a director of the kidney transplant program at Parkland Health in Dallas noticed a problem. Patients were languishing on the waiting list for donated kidneys. One patient, he said, had waited nine years for a kidney transplant, and by that time he had become too sick for the procedure. Others died waiting. “No one should have to wait that long,” he said in a recent interview. (Whoriskey, 9/17)
MedPage Today: Medical Imaging Linked To Blood Cancers In Kids
One of every 10 blood cancers in children may result from radiation exposure associated with medical imaging, according to a large retrospective analysis. … A key takeaway from the analysis is to avoid unnecessary imaging in children. (Bankhead, 9/17)
Modern Healthcare: Siemens Healthineers, Stryker To Partner On Robot
Siemens Healthineers and Stryker announced a partnership Wednesday to develop a robotic system for neurovascular procedures including treatment for strokes and aneurysms. When performing many neurovascular procedures, physicians have to operate multiple systems and tools at the same time. The companies said they seek to solve that problem by bringing robotics, imaging and therapeutic devices together into one platform. (Dubinsky, 9/17)
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