HQ Team
June 25, 2024: Israel’s Teva Pharmaceuticals will start selling a generic version of Novo Nordisk’s type 2 diabetic drug Victoza in the US market.
According to a company statement, it is the first generic GLP-1 product in the US market and provides diabetic patients with a new option.
Victoza (liraglutide) had annual sales of $1.7 billion as of April 2024. Liraglutide is an injectable prescription medicine used along with diet and exercise to lower blood sugar (glucose) in adults and children who are 10 years of age and older with type 2 diabetes mellitus.
It reduces the risk of major cardiovascular events such as heart attack, stroke or death in adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus with known heart disease.
‘Generic powerhouse’
“By launching an authorized generic for Victoza (liraglutide injection 1.8mg), we are providing patients with type 2 diabetes another option for this important treatment,” said Ernie Richardsen, SVP, Head of U.S. Commercial Generics at Teva.
“In addition to strengthening Teva’s diverse complex generics portfolio, we are providing the first generic GLP-1 product to the U.S. marketplace, demonstrating once again our ability to sustain a generics powerhouse.”
Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) are receptor agonists. It mimics the GLP-1 hormone that is released in the gastrointestinal tract in response to eating.
One role of GLP-1 is to prompt the body to produce more insulin, which reduces blood sugar. GLP-1 in higher amounts also interacts with the parts of the brain that reduce appetite and signal a feeling of fullness.
Liraglutide injection should not be used for people with type 1 diabetes and with other medicines that contain liraglutide. It is not known if liraglutide injection is safe and effective in lowering blood sugar (glucose) in children under 10 years of age.
