Lilly sets up next-gen obesity battle with full phase 3 retatrutide data

Key Points:

• Eli Lilly’s phase 3 trial of retatrutide showed that over one-third (34.9%) of patients on the highest 12 mg dose lost at least 25% of their body weight, with a mean weight loss of 20.8% at Week 80 compared to 4% on placebo.
• The trial involved 1,152 adults with obesity and Type 2 diabetes, revealing significant weight loss benefits but a more modest effect on blood sugar (A1C), with reductions of 1.4% to 1.6% versus 0.2% for placebo.
• Retatrutide outperformed Lilly’s tirzepatide in weight loss, with a higher proportion of patients losing at least 20% and 25% body weight, though tirzepatide showed better A1C control in previous trials.
• Cardiovascular risk factors improved significantly on retatrutide’s top dose, including reductions in triglycerides, non-HDL cholesterol, systolic blood pressure, waist circumference, and inflammation markers, while maintaining a GLP-1-like safety profile.
• Lilly plans to file for FDA approval of retatrutide in early 2024, aiming to strengthen its cardiometabolic franchise amid emerging competition from other triple-G agonists showing promising early data.