By Steve Goldstein
A European Medicines Agency committee said Friday that a popular weight-loss drug does not increase the risk of suicide.
The EMA had been reviewing so-called GLP-1 receptor agonists, including Ozempic and Novo Nordisk's Wegovy, since July 2023, following reports of cases of suicidal thoughts and self-harm in people taking these drugs.
The committee said it "has concluded that the available evidence does not support a causal association between glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists - dulaglutide, exenatide, liraglutide, lixisenatide and semaglutide - and suicidal and self-harm behaviours. thoughts and actions."
The committee also analyzed the results of a recent study, based on a large database of electronic medical records, which also found no link.
Shares of Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly (LLY) rose in early New York trading. Novo Nordisk (NVO) (DK:NOVO.B) is now the leading European stock by market capitalization, and Lilly is the largest drugmaker in the S&P 500 SPX, thanks to sales hopes related to GLP-1.
-Steve Goldstein
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04-12-24 1021ET
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