Boehringer’s weight-loss drug achieves primary goal in mid-stage trial conducted in Zealand

Zealand Pharma (NASDAQ:ZEAL) and its partner Boehringer Ingelheim have announced that their experimental obesity drug has achieved weight loss of up to 14.9% after 46 weeks in a mid-stage trial. This adds a potential contender to the rapidly growing obesity drug market.

According to a statement released on Wednesday, the Phase II dose-finding trial has successfully met its primary endpoint of weight loss. The Danish company added that the partners are in talks with regulators regarding a potential follow-up trial in the third and final phase of testing, which is typically required for approval.

Industry analysts and executives have predicted that the high demand for weight-loss treatments such as Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy or potentially Eli Lilly’s (NYSE:LLY) Mounjaro could support as many as 10 competing products with annual sales reaching up to $100 billion within a decade, mostly in the United States.