David Ricks, CEO of Eli Lilly, states during the main track presentation at the 43rd JP Morgan Healthcare Conference held at The Westin St. Francis Hotel in San Francisco, USA on Jan. 14 (local time), “If the clinical results of the oral Zepbound are successful, we plan to file for approval within a few weeks and launch it starting in the United States, followed by Europe and Japan.” /Courtesy of Eli Lilly

Eli Lilly, an American pharmaceutical company, plans to disclose the results of a Phase 3 clinical trial for its obesity medication, Zepbound, which is also being developed as an oral drug, in the second quarter of this year.

David Ricks, CEO of Eli Lilly, noted on the 14th (local time) during a presentation at the 43rd JPMorgan Healthcare Conference (JPM 2025) held at The Westin St. Francis in San Francisco, that "if the clinical results for oral Zepbound are successful, we plan to proceed with the approval application within weeks, starting with the U.S. and followed by launches in Europe and Japan."

The company aims to launch oral Zepbound next year. Zepbound, developed by Lilly, is an obesity treatment that received approval in November 2023. In South Korea, it is expected to be released under the product name "Mounjaro" in May.

Eli Lilly is closely following Denmark's Novo Nordisk, a leading player in the obesity treatment market. Novo Nordisk entered the market two years earlier with its weight-loss drug, Wegovy, which received FDA approval before Zepbound, capturing approximately 74% of the global obesity medication market last year. However, changes in this market landscape are being detected.

CEO Ricks pointed out that "if we look at the prescribing records for incretin (insulin secretion regulating hormones) drugs from both Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly over the past two years, we can see that the gap between the two corporations has started to narrow since May of last year," adding that "as a result of Lilly closely following Novo, the gap last month was just 2 percentage points." The U.S. incretin market size grew by 45% compared to the same quarter last year.

The prescription performance of incretin (insulin secretion regulating hormone) drugs by Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly over the last two years. /Courtesy of Eli Lilly

However, on this day, Eli Lilly's revenue forecast for the fourth quarter of last year was revised down by 5% to $13.5 billion (approximately 19.7 trillion won), causing the company's stock price to plummet. CEO Ricks commented, "Anything that fails to meet expectations is bound to be disappointing," but noted that "the annual expected growth rate for 2024 was 32%, and we exceeded the anticipated revenue by $4 billion." He emphasized that "currently, the company is showing annual sales of approximately $20 billion (29.2 trillion won) and a growth rate in the mid-10s percent range."

Tirzepatide (Mounjaro, Zepbound) recently received FDA approval as a treatment for mild to moderate obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) in addition to its obesity treatment capabilities. Obstructive sleep apnea is a condition in which breathing difficulties during sleep lead to oxygen deficiency. Current Phase 3 trials are ongoing for heart failure patients, and Phase 2 trials are in progress for metabolic-associated steatotic liver disease (MASH) patients. Eli Lilly plans to submit an approval review to the FDA based on the Phase 3 results for heart failure, expecting to launch it within this year.

CEO Ricks said, "Tirzepatide has confirmed efficacy for diabetes, obesity, sleep apnea, and now heart failure," adding that "we are gradually expanding the treatment scope beyond simple weight loss effects."

The company is also conducting research to evaluate the effects of tirzepatide on Alzheimer's disease. CEO Ricks described the study as "a very challenging project that will take a long time," stating that "we will provide research funding to prevent neurodegenerative diseases." Eli Lilly received FDA approval last July for Kisunla (generic name donanemab), a treatment that removes amyloid plaque accumulation in the brain.