Eli Lilly presented positive results for its new pill Foundayo and next-generation asset retatrutide at the American Diabetes Association’s Scientific Sessions in New Orleans this past weekend, June 10. The company highlighted not only weight loss benefits but also potential uses for sleep apnea, knee pain, and menopause.
Novo Nordisk, a competitor in the obesity treatment market, is also seeking to expand semaglutide to address conditions such as kidney, liver, and cardiovascular disease. The company presented supportive data at the meeting and hosted a dinner where executives discussed the recent successful launch of the Wegovy pill.
Other companies participating in ADA updates included Roche with partner Zealand Pharma, Boehringer Ingelheim, Pfizer—which promoted results from its Metsera acquisition—AstraZeneca, Kailera Therapeutics, among others.
In other industry news last week, GSK completed a $10.6 billion acquisition of oncology-focused Nuvalent Bio on Tuesday. Johnson & Johnson announced a smaller deal on Monday with its $1 billion buyout of Firefly Bio. These transactions contribute to an ongoing increase in mergers and acquisitions within biopharma this year—a trend driven largely by Eli Lilly’s GLP-1 revenue.
At the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Acting Commissioner Kyle Diamantas continues his leadership amid speculation that Norman Sharpless may be considered for the permanent post. Sharpless previously led the National Cancer Institute and has been outspoken about Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s vaccine policies.
Programs initiated under former Commissioner Marty Makary remain active as stakeholders seek further guidance from regulators. Last week’s FDA listening session gathered feedback on Makary’s National Priority Voucher program; several participants called for it to be paused. Ongoing confusion surrounds rare disease regulatory pathways—including a new plausible mechanism framework—and recent announcements encouraging use of prior knowledge to accelerate cell and gene therapy development have coincided with some rare disease drug rejections.
