Novo Nordisk's strongest rival for semaglutide is officially commercialized in China.
On December 25, the reporter noticed that many e-commerce platforms have already provided diagnosis and treatment services for Eli Lilly's glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP)/glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist telpotide (trade name: Mufengda). Telpotide's indications include diabetes and weight loss. Currently, the prices of various merchants on the platform are different, and the specific price is subject to the final selected store price.

Eli Lilly's telpotide can be purchased on multiple e-commerce platforms
Taking a merchant in an Internet hospital as an example, the price of 0.5ml: 2.5mg*4 is 2,480 yuan. According to this calculation, the price of a single piece is 620 yuan. The merchant said that its drugs are authentic, quickly registered, and reserved. The reporter contacted the merchant's customer service as a consumer, and the staff said that the drug can be used for weight loss and can also be delivered by express. A certain medical e-commerce pharmacy offers 0.5ml: 2.5mg*4 at 1,758 yuan, an average of about 440 yuan per stick, but it is out of stock in many regions. Another medical e-commerce medical service flagship store offers the same specification at 2,580 yuan, which can be purchased directly.

Telpotide is Eli Lilly's flagship product. The weight loss version of Zepound alone has revenue of US$3.018 billion in the first three quarters of 2024, and it is in the first echelon of the global GLP-1 track with Novo Nordisk's GLP-1 drug semaglutide. In May this year, the diabetes indication of telpotide was approved in China, and the weight loss indication was also officially approved in July. Now, with the official commercialization of telpotide, domestic diabetic patients and people with weight loss needs will be able to get this drug under the guidance of doctors.

Regarding the price of telpotide, Eli Lilly told reporters that at present, Mufengda (telpotide injection) is a self-funded drug. For specific prices, please refer to the pricing of major medical institutions. Regarding the production capacity of the drug, Eli Lilly said that the factory is running day and night, and new manufacturing facilities are also being built overnight.

▍The price of telportide in China is higher than that of semaglutide, and e-commerce has previously provided a 500 yuan reservation service
In addition to the hot GLP-1 track, the competition is also quite fierce. Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly, known as the "GLP-1 duo", are staging a "battle of kings", especially in the field of weight loss.

In terms of weight loss effect, on December 4, local time, Eli Lilly announced that at 72 weeks, in a trial of obese or overweight adults, Zepbound beat the weight loss version of semaglutide Wegovy in the primary endpoint and all five key secondary endpoints. Compared with Wegovy, Zepbound's weight loss effect is 47% higher.

In terms of price, Eli Lilly has also challenged Novo Nordisk. When the weight loss indication was approved in the United States, Eli Lilly revealed that the price of tilportide was about $1,059.87 per month, which was about 20% cheaper than Novo Nordisk's semaglutide 2.4mg. Eli Lilly also implemented a commercial savings card program, which includes that people with Zepbound commercial insurance may be eligible to pay as low as $25 for a 1-month or 3-month prescription; people with commercial insurance but not covered by Zepbound may be eligible to pay as low as $550 for a 1-month Zepbound prescription, which is about 50% lower than the list price.

Novo Nordisk's weight loss version of semaglutide was officially commercialized on November 17. According to the quotations of e-commerce platforms, the price of a single semaglutide is more than 1,000 yuan, of which 1.5ml (0.68mg/ml, 0.25mg/dose*4 times) costs 1,396 yuan, 3ml (2.27mg/ml, 1.7mg/dose*4 times) costs 2,126 yuan, and 3ml (3.2mg/ml, 2.4mg*4 times) costs 2,706 yuan.

Judging from the current prices on e-commerce platforms, the price of telpotide is generally higher than that of semaglutide.
Before the emergence of diagnosis and treatment drug services, there were already e-commerce platforms that offered reservation services for telpotide, and some clinics launched reservation services worth 500 yuan on e-commerce platforms. The reporter of The Paper consulted the customer service staff as a consumer, and the other party said that 500 yuan was a deposit.

With the commercialization of the two star weight loss drugs, semaglutide and telpotide, in China, Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly have officially started their commercialization battle in China. Regardless of who gets a higher market share or revenue, it is certain that the Chinese market will drive the performance of both pharmaceutical companies.

▍ Eli Lilly China responds to the production capacity of telport: production and transportation are being produced every day, and this scale is unprecedented
There is demand but the product cannot be bought. Both semaglutide and telport have been in short supply worldwide. Production capacity is also a key factor for each company to win the competition with GLP-1 drugs.

On December 16, local time, Danish pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk announced plans to invest 8.5 billion Danish kroner (about 8.7 billion yuan) to build a new production facility in Odense, Denmark's third largest city, which is scheduled to be completed in 2027. The production facility covers an area of more than 40,000 square meters and will produce a variety of product types, including rare disease therapies, such as hemophilia. Novo Nordisk did not disclose whether the plant produces semaglutide, a star GLP-1 drug, but relevant officials said that the plant will use advanced technology and innovative equipment to ensure that patients are provided with the highest quality drugs and meet the growing global demand for life-changing drugs.

Also in December, on December 5, local time, Eli Lilly announced that it would invest $3 billion to expand the manufacturing plant in Wisconsin that the company acquired earlier this year. Eli Lilly said it plans to start the expansion project next year, which is another step in Eli Lilly's historic manufacturing expansion agenda to help more people who rely on its drugs. Earlier, in April 2024, Eli Lilly held a groundbreaking ceremony for a new factory in Frankfurt, Germany, which is mainly used to produce injectable drugs and injection pens. It is expected to be officially operational in 2027 and shipped worldwide. It is reported that Eli Lilly plans to invest $2.5 billion in the plant to address drug shortages, including the GLP-1 drug Zepbound.

Regarding the production capacity of tilpotide, Eli Lilly China told reporters on December 23 that Eli Lilly is producing and transporting a large amount of tilpotide every day, which is unprecedented in order to meet the needs of patients. "Our factories are running day and night, and new manufacturing facilities are being built overnight." In July this year, Eli Lilly China told reporters that a total of 7 factories are currently increasing production capacity or are under construction, and it is expected to achieve the expectations set earlier this year-increasing the production of incretin drugs in the second half of 2024 to at least 1.5 times that of the first half of 2023.

According to the approval information, tilpotide is suitable for long-term weight management of adults whose body mass index (BMI) meets the following requirements on the basis of controlling diet and increasing exercise: greater than or equal to 28 (obesity) or greater than or equal to 24 (overweight) and accompanied by at least one weight-related comorbidity (such as hypertension, dyslipidemia, hyperglycemia, obstructive sleep apnea, cardiovascular disease, etc.). Semaglutide targets overweight and obese patients with an initial BMI (body mass index) greater than or equal to 30, or between 27 and 30, and with at least one weight-related comorbidity.

It should be emphasized that whether it is semaglutide or telportide, not everyone is suitable for using this type of drug for weight loss or diabetes treatment. Patients should use the drug in a standardized manner after a series of professional examinations and evaluations under the guidance of a doctor. In October this year, the "Guidelines for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Obesity (2024 Edition)" issued by the National Health Commission reminded that the rebound problem of GLP-1 weight loss drugs was particularly raised: a real-world data based on the US population showed that among patients who started using GLP-1 as a weight loss drug in 2021, about 2/3 of the patients stopped using GLP-1 within 1 year for various reasons (including drug side effects, economic burden, health insurance coverage, etc.). At present, some studies have focused on the weight loss effect of GLP-1 after discontinuation of the drug, and the results all show that there will be different degrees of weight rebound after discontinuation, and the weight can be further reduced by continuing to use the drug.

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