Eli Lilly's drug combined with Novo Nordisk's Wegovy tackles the problem of "muscle loss" in weight loss medications

Adding an experimental drug based on popular weight loss medications may address the key pain point of muscle loss for users during rapid weight loss.

On June 23, at a meeting held by the American Diabetes Association in Chicago, experimental data was released showing that Eli Lilly's experimental drug bimagrumab, when used in conjunction with Novo Nordisk's Wegovy, can help patients lose 22.1% of their weight within 48 weeks, with as much as 92.8% of the weight loss coming from fat. In contrast, patients using Wegovy alone lost 15.7% of their weight, with fat loss accounting for only 71.8%.

According to media reports, this finding suggests that through combination therapy, patients can achieve effective weight loss while maximizing the preservation of valuable muscle tissue. Muscle loss has always been a major concern for those undergoing rapid weight loss, especially for elderly patients over 65 years old. On Monday, after the U.S. stock market closed, Eli Lilly's stock price rose nearly 3.6% at one point, before retreating to close up 1%.

This breakthrough not only holds the potential to improve patients' treatment experiences and long-term health outcomes but may also reshape the landscape of the weight loss drug market, valued at hundreds of billions of dollars. The study's chief investigator, Louis Aronne, director of the Comprehensive Weight Control Center at Weill Cornell Medical College, stated:

This is exactly the result we hoped to see.

Combination Therapy Shows Advantages, but Risks Exist

Reports indicate that this trial, funded by Eli Lilly, validates the company's forward-looking investment strategy.

In 2023, Eli Lilly acquired bimagrumab from the startup Versanis Bio for approximately $2 billion. The company is currently conducting additional research on the combined use of bimagrumab with its own weight loss injection Zepbound.

Despite the promising outlook, combination drug therapy may carry a higher risk of side effects, raising concerns among some doctors.

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, which is seeking a foothold in the weight loss drug market, recently stated that the combination therapy of Wegovy with two other experimental drugs also promoted greater weight loss while effectively preserving muscle. However, about 28% of patients in that trial dropped out midway, and two patients receiving the drug died.

Although Regeneron stated that "a causal relationship between the drug and death has not yet been established," analysts noted that this outcome is "concerning."