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Japanese drugmaker Takeda Pharmaceutical (4502.T), opens new tab is exploring the option of conducting global clinical trials in India to accelerate the launch of its innovative drugs in the world's most populous nation, its India head told Reuters. The plan comes at a time when India's clinical trials market is growing, powered by diverse patient pools, cost efficiency, and a fast-growing hospital network. Grand View Research expects the market to exceed $2 billion by 2030. "India is a strategic growth market for Takeda, and we are making significant long-term investments... in terms of innovation and building capabilities," said Annapurna Das, the general manager of Takeda's India operations. She did not share financial details of the investments. "We're exploring the opportunity of leveraging India's clinical trial ecosystem," Das said. Takeda is also open to partnering with local academia, healthcare providers and technology firms in India for innovation, Das said, without sharing more specifics. "At this point of time, we are still kind of exploring and evaluating how we want to go ahead," she added. Takeda's eventual aim is to integrate India's research and development "ecosystem" into its global pipeline and expand Indian patients' access to cutting-edge therapies in oncology, neuroscience, gastrointestinal health, and inflammation. The Japanese drugmaker aims...

China's Bio-Thera Solutions (688177.SS), opens new tab said on Thursday it has granted Germany's STADA Arzneimittel commercialisation rights for its arthritis drug BAT1806, opens new tab in the EU, UK, Switzerland, certain Middle East and North Africa regions, and certain members of the Commonwealth of Independent States. Upfront payment and milestone payments will total up to 136 million euros ($158.34 million), including an 8.5 million euro down payment, milestone payments up to 127.5 million euros, and a double-digit percentage of net sales as revenue sharing, the Shanghai-listed firm said in a stock exchange filing, opens new tab.

Wegovy-maker Novo Nordisk (NOVOb.CO), opens new tab has implemented a global hiring freeze covering job roles that are not critical for its business, the company said on Wednesday. The company is battling competition from copycat versions of its blockbuster Wegovy obesity drug this year and could face layoffs as it battles rising pressure from its main rival Eli Lilly. "We currently have a hiring freeze in non-business critical areas," the company said in an emailed statement, without elaborating. Investors in July wiped $70 billion off the drugmaker's market value, after Novo - which became Europe's most valuable listed company following the launch of Wegovy in 2021 - issued a profit warning and named a company veteran as its new CEO. The new CEO, Mike Doustdar, who took the helm on August 7, told Danish broadcaster TV2 on his first day in office that he would look for cost savings throughout the company and also consider layoffs.

A multicenter French study led by Rennes University Hospital reports potential benefits of glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists for hidradenitis suppurativa (HS), with statistically significant reductions in HS-related scores at six months and at last follow-up. HS is a chronic skin condition that causes painful lumps and lesions in areas like the armpits, groin, and buttocks. Skin inflammation causes hair follicles to get blocked and the nearby sweat glands become inflamed, causing the lesions. The majority of HS patients are overweight or have obesity. Dysfunctional adipose tissue contributes to the pathophysiology by overproducing proinflammatory adipokines and cytokines, while reducing anti-inflammatory adiponectin. Weight loss, through diet or obesity surgery, has a beneficial effect on HS in most patients. Meaningful reductions remain a challenge. Glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists, originally developed for type 2 diabetes, have demonstrated major efficacy in inducing weight loss and could also possess anti-inflammatory properties, prompting investigation into their impact on HS. In the study, "Glucagon-Like Peptide-1 Receptor Agonists in Hidradenitis Suppurativa," published in JAMA Dermatology, researchers conducted a retrospective multicenter cohort study to assess the impact of GLP-1 receptor agonists on HS outcomes. Among 66 patients with HS from 15 centers, median follow-up while taking GLP-1 receptor agonists was 18.5 months. Semaglutide was...

U.S. prices for obesity-treatment pills that Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk aim to launch next year likely will be on par with their weight-loss injections, analysts and investors say, in a departure from the usual practice of charging more for new medicines despite pressure to cut prices. Neither drugmaker has disclosed pricing plans for their new daily oral medications. With regulatory approvals and launches still months away, pricing plans could change. Denmark-based Novo expects approval later this year and to launch soon after, while Indianapolis-based Lilly expects to launch by August 2026. Novo's Wegovy and Lilly's Zepbound, administered as weekly injections, are the only highly effective weight-loss drugs targeting the GLP-1 hormone, and the United States is their biggest market. U.S. list prices are about $1,000 per month or more, with both companies offering a monthly supply for $499 to customers paying cash rather than using health insurance. Both companies have said they developed oral weight-loss drugs to meet patient needs and widen access to the market, mindful that some people are averse to injections. The pills, however, are not more effective than the injections. Lilly said this month its pill orforglipron cut weight by 12.4% after 72 weeks in a trial. That...

Novo Nordisk's weight-loss treatment Wegovy gained U.S. approval to treat a progressive liver condition on Friday, as the Danish drugmaker looks to boost sales and widen insurance coverage. Eli Lilly's blockbuster diabetes drug Mounjaro and related weight-loss therapy Zepbound, and Novo's rival medicines Ozempic and Wegovy brought in combined sales of over $40 billion last year, which is expected to rise to $60 billion in 2025. Here are some of the other conditions the drugs are being used and tested for: Alcohol addiction * A study conducted by the University of Copenhagen's Psychiatric Centre Rigshospitalet is investigating whether semaglutide - the main ingredient in Wegovy and Ozempic - can help reduce alcohol intake in 108 patients diagnosed with alcohol use disorder and obesity. Alzheimer's disease * Novo Nordisk is testing semaglutide in a late-stage trial in patients with early Alzheimer's disease. The study, which will enroll 1,840 patients, could have an initial data readout as early as later this year. Cardiovascular disease * Eli Lilly was testing tirzepatide - the main ingredient in Mounjaro and Zepbound - for patients with heart failure and obesity. Lilly had said it would enroll about 700 people in the study, but the company said in May that it has withdrawn its...

Shares in Novo Nordisk (NOVOb.CO), opens new tab rose on Monday, after it got U.S. approval for its weight-loss drug Wegovy to treat a serious liver condition, positive news for the drugmaker that lost more than one-third of its market value in recent weeks. Novo's shares rose as much as 5% at opening and were trading 3.5% higher by 0711 GMT. Keep up with the latest medical breakthroughs and healthcare trends with the Reuters Health Rounds newsletter. Sign up here. Three weeks ago, investors wiped $70 billion off its market value, after Novo - which became Europe's most valuable listed company following the launch of Wegovy in 2021 - issued a profit warning and named a company veteran as new CEO. On Friday, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration granted accelerated approval for Wegovy to treat metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis, or MASH, making it the first GLP-1 class therapy cleared for the progressive liver condition that affects around 5% of adults in the United States. Rival Eli Lilly (LLY.N), opens new tab has published encouraging MASH data in a mid-stage trial with tirzepatide - the active ingredient in its popular diabetes drug Mounjaro and weight-loss treatment Zepbound. "It is expected that this market exclusivity will only...

Pharmaceutical research and development firms in China are increasingly interested in procuring critical supplies known as reagents from local manufacturers, industry executives and managers said, as they seek to cut costs and delivery times. Western reagent suppliers including U.S.-based Thermo Fisher Scientific and Germany's Merck (MRCG.DE), opens new tab have profited in the world's second-largest pharmaceutical market from the compounds used in lab tests for analysis and quality control. But rising Chinese import tariffs due to the trade war with the U.S. and longer-term concerns about costs or access are spurring Chinese companies to request products from local rivals like Shanghai Titan Scientific (688133.SS), opens new tab and Nanjing Vazyme Biotech (688105.SS), opens new tab instead, the executives and managers said. The five who spoke to Reuters work at Chinese firms involved in the purchase or supply of reagents and their comments are an early sign of an expected industry shift toward more Chinese purchases. China's reagent market for lab and diagnostic use has been to some extent supplied by imports, which were valued at $5.76 billion in 2024, down slightly from $5.83 billion in 2023, according to U.N. Comtrade data. "It is actually more advantageous (for reagents to be local) because the timeliness...

Doctors advise most patients on GLP-1 obesity drugs such as Wegovy and Zepbound to stay on them to keep the weight off, but as more U.S. insurers restrict coverage people are trimming costs by stretching doses or forgoing expenditures like vacations to pay for the medication out of pocket. A half dozen doctors who spoke with Reuters said insurance coverage has tightened in 2025 as many employers drop it for the expensive GLP-1 drugs. While patients on these medications are counseled on proper diet and exercise, clinical trials show that people who stop taking these drugs are apt to regain weight, opens new tab. Get a quick look at the days breaking legal news and analysis from The Afternoon Docket newsletter. Sign up here. Novo Nordisk's (NOVOb.CO), opens new tab Wegovy and Eli Lilly's (LLY.N), opens new tab Zepbound are weekly injections with U.S. insurer list prices of more than $1,000 a month. For customers willing to pay cash, both drugmakers will ship directly for $499 a month if refills are purchased at fixed intervals. "A significant number of my patients now pay cash," said Dr. Nidhi Kansal, an obesity specialist at Northwestern Medicine in Chicago. "People find a way to scrounge up...

Novo Nordisk (NOVOb.CO), opens new tab said on Friday the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has granted accelerated approval for its weight-loss drug Wegovy to treat a serious liver condition called metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis, strengthening its presence in the metabolic disease market. The approval makes Wegovy the first GLP-1 class therapy cleared for MASH, a progressive liver condition that affects around 5% of adults in the United States, according to the American Liver Foundation. Keep up with the latest medical breakthroughs and healthcare trends with the Reuters Health Rounds newsletter. Sign up here. "There really (have) not been good treatments in this space. We're only the second FDA-approved treatment for MASH, and we really need better medications that have better overall benefit-risk profiles, that really can also prevent the progression of the disease," Jason Brett, principal U.S. medical head at Novo Nordisk, said in an interview with Reuters. So far, the only available FDA-approved treatment for MASH is the Madrigal Pharmaceuticals drug (MDGL.O), opens new tab Rezdiffra, which was approved in 2024. The FDA's decision was based on part one of an ongoing two-part study that showed Wegovy helped improve the organ's condition in more patients with MASH and liver scarring, compared to a...