SEOUL, October 23 (AJP) - South Korea's first domestically developed GLP-1 obesity drug will become available at some clinics from Oct. 29, just three weeks after winning regulatory approval.
Hanmi Pharmaceutical's Eppe, or efpeglenatide, reduced body weight by an adjusted average of 9.02 percent after 40 weeks in a Phase 3 trial, compared with 0.89 percent for a placebo, according to prescribing information approved by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety.
About 75 percent of patients taking the drug lost at least 5 percent of their body weight. The trial involved 448 Korean adults with obesity or overweight who did not have diabetes.
The ministry approved Eppe on Oct. 7 as Korea's 45th domestically developed new drug and its first homegrown GLP-1 obesity treatment.
The drug is administered once a week, starting at 2 mg and gradually increasing to a maintenance dose of 10 mg.
Its launch adds a Korean-developed option to a market dominated by Novo Nordisk's Wegovy and Eli Lilly's Mounjaro. Hanmi disclosed the Oct. 29 prescription date at a medical symposium in Seoul on Thursday.
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