Market analysts are comparing Foundayo’s sales with other GLP-1 medications, such as the oral version of Wegovy.
Lilly’s Foundayo is reportedly off to a strong start.
The company’s obesity only recently hit the market, and a report from Reuters says that the pill saw 1,390 prescriptions in its first week.1 The data, collected and analyzed by IQVIA, is reportedly based on two days of capture, ending on April 10.
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However, rival weight-loss drug provider Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy launched in January of this year and reportedly saw 3,071 prescriptions during its first four days. Both companies are fighting for control of the obesity medication market space.
RBC Capital Markets analyst Trung Huynh spoke with Reuters on the two launches and explained that comparing early launch data won’t provide the full picture of which drug is more popular. Instead, he says its important to see how Foundayo compares to the Wegovy pill at about eight-to-ten weeks.
Reuters also reports that shares for Eli Lilly rose 1.6% before the markets opened on Friday, April 17th (the same day this news broke).
Analysts are closely watching the market, as oral versions of the medications are entering alongside the traditional injectables. So far, injectable versions of weight loss medications still lead sales.
Earlier this week,
FDA also requested 15 years of thyroid cancer risk data, which is consistent with the existing warnings on previous iterations of Wegovy and Zepbound. However, the agency also requires Lilly to establish a registry of children and pregnant women taking the medication to treat obesity to monitor outcomes.
In response to FDA’s requirements,2 Lilly issued a statement on the safety profile for Foundayo. In the statement, senior vice president of product development at Lilly Cardiometabolic Health Thomas Seck, MD, said, “Across seven Phase 3 studies enrolling more than 11,000 patients, Foundayo has demonstrated a consistent safety and efficacy profile. ACHIEVE-4 adds a new dimension to that evidence—cardiovascular safety and a lower observed risk of all-cause death in patients who carry elevated cardiovascular risk. Together with the simplicity of a once-daily pill that requires no food or water restrictions, we believe Foundayo could be an important new treatment option for people with type 2 diabetes."
Lilly also plans to submit Foundayo for approval to treat Type 2 diabetes by the end of the second quarter 2026 using a Commissioner’s National Priority Review Voucher. Foundayo was approved for obesity under the same priority program.
At the time of the drug’s approval, Lilly’s chair and CEO
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