In a clinical trial, the new weight-loss medication retatrutide led to "clinically meaningful weight reduction," with the highest dose linked to a 30% reduction in average body weight
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A powerful new medication showed dramatic weight loss results in a clinical trial, where some patients lost more than 30% of their body weight in less than two years.
Retatrutide, a new drug in development from Zepbound and Foundayo manufacturer Eli Lilly and Company, showed significant weight loss during a clinical trial, the pharmaceutical company said in a May 21 press release. In a trial of 2,339 participants who were either overweight or struggling with obesity, results were recorded for those who received varying doses of retatrutide: 4 mg, 9 mg, 12 mg, or placebo.
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Over a period of 104 weeks, participants on the highest dose (12 mg) lost 30.3% of their total body weight, or an average of 85 lbs. Those on 9 mg dose lost 29.5% of their body weight, or an average of 80 lbs. Participants on the lowest dose (4 mg) lost 27.9%, or 73 lbs.
Unlike similar medications on the market, retatrutide is a triple-agonist; along with GLP-1, it also targets GIP and glucagon.
“There's about 10% of patients that don't respond to GLP-1s,” Dr. Susan Spratt, an endocrinologist and the senior medical director for the Population Health Management Office at Duke Health in North Carolina, told NBC News. “This could be very useful for patients who are GLP-1 non-responders.”
Reported side effects from retatrutide were largely gastrointestinal, which dovetails with those reported by other, similar weight-loss medications; those on the highest dosage were more likely to struggle with nausea, diarrhea, constipation, and vomiting. A smaller percentage struggled with upper respiratory tract infections and urinary tract infections.
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"It was impressive to see that every dose of retatrutide resulted in clinically meaningful weight reduction for nearly all participants, and people with severe obesity on the highest dose lost on average 30% of their body weight over two years. Importantly, treatment with retatrutide not only resulted in robust weight reduction, but also in clear improvements in assessed cardiometabolic health measures," Ania Jastreboff, M.D., Ph.D., Professor of Medicine & Pediatrics (Endocrinology) at the Yale School of Medicine, Director of the Yale Obesity Research Center (Y-Weight), and lead investigator, said in the release.
Eli Lilly said other trials are still underway. The drug's availability will "depend on the completion of these trials and the regulatory approval process." As for eventual cost, the pharmaceutical giant said "Our goal is to make our medicines available and accessible to people who need them."
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