Weight-loss drug Wegovy to hit market on Tuesday

Weight-loss drug Wegovy will go on sale in Korea on Tuesday, with the much-anticipated injectable drug available for order through Zeullig Pharma Korea.

Weight-loss drug Wegovy will go on sale in Korea on Tuesday [REUTER/YONHAP]

Weight-loss drug Wegovy will go on sale in Korea on Tuesday as the competition starts to heat up with injections from Mounjaro and weight-loss patches and pills by overseas and domestic pharmaceutical companies also prepping to launch.

Wegovy, a pen-shaped once-weekly injectable prescription drug, will be priced at 372,025 won ($241) per unit, but the final retail price for consumers is estimated to be over 800,000 won, according to local media reports, as it is not covered by the national health insurance.

Zuellig Pharma Korea, the firm responsible for the distribution of Wegovy in the country, will be accepting orders for the weight-loss drug from clinics and pharmacies starting Tuesday.

Wegovy will be only prescribed to patients with a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or greater, or to those with a BMI between 27 and 30 and obesity-related health conditions such as high blood pressure.

The weight-loss drug, first approved by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (FDA) in April of last year, mimics the action of a gut hormone called glucagon-like peptide 1, helping to regulate appetite and food intake. Clinical test research showed that a 68-week-long regimen with weekly injections resulted in a 14.9 percent decrease in weight.

Mounjaro, an injection-type drug effective for chronic weight management manufactured by Eli Lilly and Company, is also preparing for release in the country after receiving FDA approval in August. The drug showed weight loss of up to 22.5 percent over 72 weeks, according to a test conducted by the company.

Common side effects for both Wegovy and Mounjaro include nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, constipation and stomach pain.

Korean pharmaceutical firms are preparing to tackle the introduction of Wegovy with injections that last longer or drugs that don't require injections.

Peptron announced on Oct. 8 that it signed a 14-month-long technical evaluation contract with Eli Lilly and Company to research new drugs that combine Peptron’s SmartDepot technology and the U.S. company’s drugs. SmartDepot is technology that allows for a gradual release of medication.

Daewoong Pharmaceutical showcased its long-acting semaglutide injection during the 2024 Convention on Pharmaceutical Ingredients held on Oct. 8, which reduces the injection period to every month. The injection is designed to slowly release semaglutide to maintain a steady dosage for 30 days.

Dongkook Pharmaceutical is currently developing injection technology that will last for two to three months per shot.

Weight-loss drugs in the market are currently all in the form of injections, so firms like Raphas and Daewon Pharmaceutical are working on a patch-type drug that sticks to the body using microneedle technology while D&D Pharmatech is developing a consumable drug. Both types are claimed to have an efficacy similar to injection types.

The market for weight-loss drugs was sized at $11 billion as of 2023 — resulting from the proliferation of the concept of obesity as a disease, similar to diabetes and other chronic heart-related diseases, following an increase in the overweight and obese population due to a change in dietary habits.

Korea is currently the fourth largest market after the United States, Brazil and Australia at 178 billion won, with the market growing 7.3 percent every year, according to data compiled by market tracker IQVIA.

“Convenience and longevity are something that conventional weight-loss drugs cannot achieve [as of today],” Hyundai Motor Securities analyst Yeo No-rae said. “Therefore, people focus on Korean pharmaceutical companies and the changes in market.”

BY KIM KYUNG-MI [cho.yongjun1@joongang.co.kr]