Pfizer has stopped the development of its weight loss pill after a patient experienced a liver injury that was potentially caused by the drug.
The pharmaceutical giant halted the creation of danuglipron, an oral GLP-1 drug that was hoped would work like Ozempic in pill-form.
Dr Chris Boshoff, Pfizer's Chief Scientific Officer, confirmed in statement on April 14: 'While we are disappointed to discontinue the development of danuglipron, we remain committed to evaluating and advancing promising programs in an effort to bring innovative new medicines to patients.'
The patient, who was not identified, did not experience any liver-related symptoms or side effects and their injury.
Pfizer officials noted in an official statement that the rate of elevated liver enzymes in over 1,400 participants who took Pfizer's danuglipron was in line with other approved GLP-1 drugs for weight loss.
However, there was one person who experienced a 'potential drug-induced liver injury' which was was 'resolved' after they stopped taking the pill.
It remains unclear what kind of injury the patient suffered and if it was related to the enzyme levels in their liver. But elevated enzymes can lead to liver cancer over time.
The once-a-day version of the pill was in early-stage testing as researchers were trying to figure out the best dose for patients.
The company intended to move the drug into late-stage testing which is the last phase of development before a company submits the treatment to government regulators for approval.
However, it decided to cancel development of danuglipron once the liver injury in a patient was identified.
But despite the setback, Dr Boshoff assured that the company is still looking to develop a weight loss pill.
The statement continued: 'Cardiovascular and metabolic diseases including obesity remain important areas of unmet medical need, and we plan to continue applying our global capabilities to advance a pipeline of investigational treatments that have the potential to fill critical gaps in patient care, including continued development of our oral GIPR antagonist candidate and other earlier obesity program.'
Pfizer also said that the data from danuglipron's development program will be presented at a scientific forum or submitted for publication in a peer-reviewed journal in the future.
Weight loss medication has recently seen a huge rise in demand but most are in the form of injections.
Ozempic, an anti-diabetic medication that also helps in weight loss, recorded about $16.7 billion sales of sales in the US in 2024.
As of 2024, over 15 million (one in 17) Americans have a prescription for this blockbuster drug.
Mounjaro, Ozempic's sister drug which shot to fame for its weight loss capabilities by the of 2024, brought in $3.5 billion in sales in the last quarter.
The only oral GLP-1 approved by the Food and Drug Administration so far is Novo Nordisk’s Rybelsus, which treats Type 2 diabetes and raked in about $3.38 billion in sales in 2024.
In 2023, Pfizer announced that it would abandon the twice-a-day oral version of danuglipron after more than half the patients in a clinical trial dropped out due to frequent episodes of nausea and vomiting.
