Healthy Returns: Eli Lilly, Novo Nordisk are competing to develop more convenient weekly insulins

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Think a friend or colleague should be getting this newsletter? Share this link with them to sign up. Good afternoon! The rivalry between Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk extends beyond a buzzy class of weight loss and diabetes drugs called GLP-1s. The two drugmakers are also competing to develop once-weekly insulin injections. Those shots could provide a longer-lasting and more convenient option than daily insulin and other common treatments for managing diabetes. Patients with Type 1 diabetes require insulin every day. Meanwhile, roughly a third of people with Type 2 diabetes need insulin injections to keep their blood sugar within a healthy range, according to some estimates. But some resist or delay treatment due to inconvenience and pain, among other reasons, which could worsen their long-term health. A successful weekly injection is also crucial to Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk maintaining dominance in the insulin market. Together, Eli Lilly, Novo Nordisk and French drugmaker Sanofi make up roughly 90% of the insulin market in the U.S., and have faced political pressure to make these life-sustaining diabetes treatments more affordable. The race to develop less frequent insulin heated up on Thursday after Eli Lilly released positive initial data from two late-stage clinical trials on its weekly injection, called efsitora, in patients with Type 2 diabetes. The company is also studying the experimental drug in patients with Type 1 diabetes. Efsitora is Eli Lilly's answer to Novo Nordisk's experimental weekly insulin injection, icodec. In a note Friday, TD Cowen analyst Steve Scala said the new data on Eli Lilly's efsitora looks "competitive" but "slightly inferior" to Novo Nordisk's icodec when comparing across clinical trials. He added that Eli Lilly's injection is one to two years behind Novo Nordisk's. Icodec was recently recommended for approval in Europe. An advisory panel to the Food and Drug Administration is also meeting on Friday to discuss Novo Nordisk's application for approval in the U.S.