It is likely that Novo Nordisk will have brought weight-loss drug amycretin in pill form to the market by 2030, Head of Development Martin Holst Lange says in an interview with the news agency Reuters.

”I never commit to timelines, but I would feel comfortable saying that it will at least be within this decade,” he says.

On Thursday, Novo Nordisk announced data from a Phase I study of amycretin in pill form showing a 13.1% weight loss over 12 weeks.

This sent the Novo Nordisk share price soaring by more than 8%.

Lange also told Reuters that it is a ”likely scenario” that both amycretin and cagrisema have the same cardiovascular benefits as Wegovy.

On August 8, 2023, Novo Nordisk published data from a study showing that Wegovy could reduce the risk of serious cardiovascular events by 20%.

Following the publication of the study, Novo Nordisk shares soared and by the end of the day, the stock’s value had risen by over 17%.

On Thursday, according to Børsen, the head of development said that current results show that people with diabetes can achieve a weight loss of over 20% by taking cagrisema.

The expectation is that people without diabetes can achieve a weight loss of over 25% on cagrisema.

He also said that amycretin has the potential to provide as much weight loss as cagrisema.

Novo Nordisk hopes to develop amycretin in pill form and as an injection simultaneously, Lange told Reuters.

(Translated using DeepL with additional editing by Catherine Brett)