Patients testing a new weight-loss drug developed by the creators of Ozempic have revealed the extreme effects it had on their bodies.
Danish pharma giant Novo Nordisk has been tight-lipped about its next generation fat-melting shot, CagriSema, after disappointing trial results were published last year.
The new cocktail drug – which combined the key ingredient in Wegovy and Ozempic with another appetite suppressant drug – helped participants lose 22.7 percent of their original weight, below the targeted 25 percent weight loss.
There were also concerns it made the nastier side effects of Ozempic – an upset stomach, cramps and constipation – worse.
Now, patients involved in those studies have shared their experiences — anonymously to avoid breaching non-disclosure agreements (NDA) — and painted a more mixed picture.
One participant in the trial, who asked to be identified by her middle name Jane, said she repeatedly suffered frightening fainting episodes during her first six months on CagriSema.
Yet despite the brutal side effects, she was blown away by the results, losing 29 percent of her body weight in just over a year, the equivalent of around 40kg (88lbs).
This compares to clinical trials of Ozempic (semaglutide), where during the same period, participants lost an average of around 15 percent of their body weight.
Patients testing a new and more powerful version of Ozempic have revealed what it did their bodies ; the good and the bad
Jane suspects the unpleasant side effects she endured were due to the rapid weight loss.
She said: ‘I guess it’s quite normal to feel awful when you lose 30 to 40 kilograms in the span of six months.’
After reaching the highest dose of CagriSema, she stopped losing weight as rapidly.
She also said the side effects subsided as she got used to the medicine.
Michelle Rivera, who lives in Dallas, Texas, said she lost her appetite completely when she started taking CagriSema as part of a year-long trial.
Ozempic and Wegovy work by releasing hormones which cause people to feel fuller for longer, reducing their appetite.
But Ms Rivera says her reaction with CagriSema was more extreme, explaining that ‘literally nothing was appetizing’ and she struggled for eat for around the first six months she was on the drug.
With less than six months left on the trial, Ms Rivera says her appetite has slowly returned but she still eats much smaller portions that she used to.
As with Ozempic, constipation is a common side effect of CagriSema as it slows bowel movements.
To counteract this, Ms Rivera says she prioritizes protein, water and fiber.
So far, she has lost around 22 percent of her weight.
On her trial, the participants had the option of not increasing their dose if the side-effects bothered them.
But Rivera kept to the recommended schedule and reached the maximum dose after about six months.
A chart showing US prescriptions for Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy and Eli Lilly’s Zepbound over a six month period
Another participant in an ongoing trial, who asked to be identified by her middle name Leigh, says that the nausea, fatigue and brain fog she experiences in the 24 hours after her weekly CagriSema injection are so bad that she sometimes can’t leave bed.
She has, however, kept to the recommended dosing protocol in the hope of losing more weight.
After a year on CagriSema, she has lost about 18 percent of her weight. The medicine is ‘life changing’, she said.
Novo expects to submit CagriSema for regulatory approval towards the end of 2025
But when she finishes the trial this summer, she wants to explore whether a maintenance dose of a GLP-1 medicine would help her sustain weight loss without such intense side-effects.
‘What I’m dealing with now, it’s not sustainable,’ she explained.
In its December report, Novo said the most common adverse events in its CagriSema trials were gastrointestinal and the vast majority were mild to moderate and diminished over time.
It also revealed that people who adhered to the CagriSema treatment plan achieved an overall weight loss of 22.7 per cent after 68 weeks, with 40.4 percent of participants losing 25 percent or more.
That was lower than the 25 percent across-the-board weight loss it expected.
The disappointment wiped as much as $125 billion off Novo’s value on the day.
Novo also said only 57.3 percent of patients reached the highest dose of the medicine, but didn’t explain why.
Commentators have suspected it was either because patients suffered side-effects or because they lost weight on lower doses.
Some investors and analysts were also surprised the Novo trial used a ‘flexible’ protocol, permitting patients to change their dose strength instead of adhering to a schedule.
They said this could be a factor in the low take-up of the highest dose.
Novo has said it will start a new trial by June with the full data from its most recent trials released at the same time.
It expects to submit CagriSema for regulatory approval towards the end of 2025. When it hits the market, it is predicted to garner $7.4 billion in sales by 2029.
Novo’s main competitor, Eli Lilly, maker of Mounjaro and Zepbound, and a smattering of other companies are expected to follow suit to meet staggering demand driven by record high obesity rates in the US.
The weight loss drug market is expanding rapidly, with a projected value of $100 billion by 2030.
