Eli Lilly’s diabetes drug Mounjaro showed heart health benefits in a late-stage trial comparing it to Trulicity. Results indicated Mounjaro wasn’t worse than Trulicity at treating Type 2 diabetes with established cardiovascular disease. Mounjaro reduced cardiovascular death, heart attack, or stroke risk by 8%, but didn’t meet some analysts’ benchmarks for superiority over Trulicity.

The trial enrolled over 13,000 people and showed Mounjaro had more comprehensive benefits compared to Trulicity, including a 16% lower rate of death from any cause and improved kidney protection. Clinicians found the results clinically meaningful, especially the lowered risk of cardiovascular events. The data will help providers and patients make treatment decisions.

Dr. Howard Weintraub called Mounjaro a “winner” in the trial, but noted it had slightly more side effects than Trulicity. Eli Lilly plans to submit the heart health data to regulators by the end of the year, aiming for approval in 2026. The results solidify Eli Lilly’s lead over Novo Nordisk in the weight loss and diabetes drug market.

Mounjaro already has approval for Type 2 diabetes, covering around 30% of people with Type 2 diabetes who also have cardiovascular disease. Analysts believe uptake of tirzeptide, the active ingredient in Mounjaro, will be largely unaffected by the study’s results. Mounjaro showed greater improvements than Trulicity in some cardiovascular measures, body weight, and blood sugar levels.

Read more at CNBC: Eli Lilly’s Mounjaro shows similar heart health benefits as Trulicity