Novo Nordisk launches anti-obesity drug Wegovy in India

New Delhi Danish pharmaceutical firm Novo Nordisk on Tuesday launched in India its anti-obesity drug Wegovy, indicated for both long-term chronic weight management and reduction in risk of major adverse cardiovascular events.

The company, known for its dominance in the insulin segment, is launching Wegovy in India across urban and rural markets in all five-dose strengths to play its "power game" expecting it to be one of the top launches in the industry, Novo Nordisk India Managing Director Vikrant Shrotriya told PTI.

Wegovy will be available in a once-weekly innovative pen device in dose strengths 0.25 mg, 0.5 mg, 1 mg, 1.7 mg and a maintenance dosing of 2.4 mg with monthly price of Rs 17,345-26,050, said the company, maker of blockbuster drug Ozempic that is indicated for treatment of diabetes.

The company said semaglutide is the active ingredient in both Ozempic and Wegovy. In many countries, Ozempic is indicated for the treatment of adults with insufficiently controlled type 2 diabetes. Ozempic is not yet available in India.

On the other hand Wegovy is indicated for weight management and reducing the risk of major adverse cardiovascular events in adults with established cardiovascular disease and either obesity or overweight.

"We launched oral semaglutide in 2022 for type 2 diabetes which is already there in the market addressing a major need in type 2 diabetes...we wanted to launch semaglutide for obesity...diabetes we have addressed it and for obesity we are now launching the injectable semaglutide (Wegovy)," Shrotriya said.

The drug works by acting on key areas of the brain involved in appetite regulation and food intake thereby reducing hunger, improving satiety and reducing cravings for food, eventually inducing weight-loss. It also improves insulin resistance and has a beneficial effect on reduction of cardiometabolic events and risk factors.

When asked about the potential of Wegovy and sales expectations from it, Shrotriya said,"We are not chasing any number in India. What we are chasing is how to really create awareness among patients, healthcare professionals, and also work and collaborate with them in terms of bringing access to the product much faster." On the potential of the drug, he said India has the third largest obesity and overweight population of 254 million.

"People have started understanding that obesity needs to be arrested. It is the gateway to many disorders in India or across the world...We feel very strong about launching in India," he said.

Novo Nordisk is launching Wegovy in India unrestricted, across urban and rural markets, said Shrotriya.

"We are looking for one of the top launches in the healthcare industry, those are the plans with which we are going forward," he said when asked about the commercial potential of Wegovy.

For Novo Nordisk, Shrotriya said,"The overall semaglutide franchise is almost crossing to the tune of Rs 1,71,834 crore ($20 billion) (globally). We are also looking at what we can do in India."

Asserting that the trust and reliability of Novo Nordisk in protein and peptide chemistry in the last four decades have been very strong, he said, "What we want to do (in India) is to play our power game. We play the game which is justifiable for us and in the bargain we also get a sizeable business."

Citing the example of insulin that has been the largest of medication which has been out of patents, he said," Despite having insulin from many of the companies in India, every second patient takes Novo Nordisk insulin because we have got the medicine and we have 'go the delivery devices'."

On the expected competition once the patent for semaglutide expires next year, he said,"We welcome competition when the patent expires next year. I feel many more players are required to address the need."

Shrotriya said the company has received all regulatory approvals to market and distribute Wegovy in India. It is being imported from Denmark, adding "right now we feel sufficient to serve demand".

Pricing has been tailored for what an Indian patient would require and it doesn't hit that much when a patient goes for acceleration of dosages, he noted.

"We have an India-specific price with the benefit of the same price for the first three dosing strengths. With this we are reaffirming our commitment to address India's growing burden of overweight and obesity," he added.

The company is open for partnerships with healthcare providers, hospitals, clinics, doctors and even the state governments to combat obesity in India, Shrotriya said.

"Obesity has a very high economic impact -- 1.59 per cent toll on GDP in India by 2030 and it will increase while we increase our GDP. It will increase to 2.5 per cent of GDP by 2050-2060. That is an unproportionate level of onslaught on the economic index," Shrotriya added.

Obesity is not just a personal health concern-- it is a chronic disease and a national epidemic that India cannot afford to ignore, he asserted.

The launch of Wegovy comes months after Eli Lilly launched its blockbuster drug 'Mounjaro' in India in March this year.

Novo Nordisk India asserted that Wegovy is a prescription-only medication that has the potential to improve the quality of life for millions of Indians living with obesity or being overweight.

Citing INDIAB study, the company said India has 254 million people with generalised obesity and 351 million people with abdominal obesity. The country has the third highest number of people living with overweight and obesity.

Alarmingly, obesity is associated with over 200 diseases, including cardiovascular diseases, certain types of cancer, and type 2 diabetes, it added.

Novo Nordisk said Ozempic and Wegovy have been studied extensively in different trial participants and are indicated for different uses, as well as available in different dosages.