Health
Diabetes patients now have access to first generic GLP-1 medication: ‘More accessible and affordable’
Ozempic, Wegovy and other GLP-1 medications have gained widespread popularity for weight loss and diabetes control in recent years — but the spike in demand has made it difficult for some people to get the drugs.
To help eliminate supply chain snafus, the first-ever generic GLP-1 — a duplicate of Victoza — launched on June 25.
Manufactured by Novo Nordisk and distributed and sold by Israel-based Teva Pharmaceuticals, Victoza is an injectable medication intended to treat type 2 diabetes. It has also been shown to promote weight loss in certain patients, according to Teva.
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While Ozempic and Wegovy contain semaglutide and Mounjaro has tirzepatide, Victoza has liraglutide as its active ingredient.
“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 a press release from the company.
The first-ever generic GLP-1, a version of Teva Pharmaceuticals’ Victoza, launched in late June 2024. (iStock; Getty Images)
The new authorized generic is the exact same medication as brand-name Victoza, but without the brand name on the label and sold at a lower price point, explained Alyssa Billingsley, PharmD, the senior director of Pharmacy Content at GoodRx in St. Louis, Missouri.
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Just as Wegovy is a higher-dose version of Ozempic to treat obesity, there is a higher-dose version of Victoza — sold under the brand name Saxenda — but a generic version is not yet available.
“This is a positive step forward to making GLP-1 agonist medications more accessible and affordable,” Billingsley told Fox News Digital via email.
Victoza is manufactured by Novo Nordisk and distributed and sold by Israel-based Teva Pharmaceuticals. (Getty Images)
This class of drugs has a growing list of beneficial applications beyond just treating type 2 diabetes, Billingsley noted, but their cost can be a barrier for many people to access them.
“In general, authorized generics are usually priced at a discount, potentially making them a more affordable option for some people,” she said.
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“However, some insurers may still prefer brand-name Victoza, even with a lower-cost authorized generic available.”
Patients should check with their insurance provider to confirm which options are covered and what they can expect to pay, Billingsley advised.
This class of drugs has a growing list of benefits, but cost can be a barrier for some patients. (iStock)
Dr. Brett Osborn, a Florida neurologist and longevity expert, agreed that the availability of the first generic GLP-1 is “great news.”
The generic’s lower price point is particularly beneficial for people who have chronic conditions like diabetes, Osborn noted — “where long-term medication use is necessary to prevent downrange effects like vascular disease, strokes and heart attacks, cancer, neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s, and obesity, the latter of which is also a ‘gateway disease,’” he said.
Differences between liraglutide and semaglutide
There are some differences between the generic version of Victoza and Ozempic and other GLP-1 agonists, doctors noted.
The new drug’s active ingredient is liraglutide instead of Ozempic’s semaglutide — and it is approved for use in both adults and children age 10 and older who have diabetes.
Semaglutides are not yet approved for children.
While semaglutides like Ozempic are given once each week, liraglutide medications require daily dosing because they have a shorter half-life. (iStock)
There are also dosing differences — while semaglutides like Ozempic are given once each week, liraglutide medications require daily dosing because they have a shorter half-life, the doctor said.
“Each medication has pros and cons,” Osborn said. “At base level, however, the molecules are similar and subserve identical bodily functions — appetite suppression and the promotion of insulin secretion from the pancreas.”
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The most common side effects of liraglutides include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, decreased appetite, indigestion and constipation, according to the company’s release. Other, more serious side effects are possible.
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Patients who experience adverse or lingering side effects should see a health care provider.
Fox News Digital reached out to Teva Pharmaceuticals and Novo Nordisk for comment.
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An accidental lab discovery has opened the door to entirely new ways of preventing the flu.
While investigating how influenza replicates, researchers discovered that different flu strains use completely different strategies to infiltrate human cells, SWNS reported.
By targeting the specific molecules the viruses rely on, scientists found that they could block them from entering new cells and halt their replication altogether.
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Researchers say these “fundamental insights” into seasonal influenza highlight a clear path toward developing better preventive medications.
“The hope is that fundamental, curiosity-based research like this helps to pave the way for novel strategies to treat and prevent influenza infections,” principal investigator Dr. Emily Bruce, from the University of Vermont’s Larner College of Medicine, said in the SWNS report.
While investigating how influenza replicates, researchers discovered that different flu strains use completely different strategies to infiltrate human cells. (iStock)
While several flu strains cause illness, H1N1 and H3N2 influenza A viruses are the most common. However, current flu tests cannot differentiate between them, and clinical treatments are identical for both.
Although vaccines and antivirals are available, Bruce noted a “dire” need for better medications to stop the virus from spreading cell to xxcell.
“You don’t get sick when a virus is in one cell,” he noted. “You get sick because a virus replicates itself and goes into many more cells.”
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The study, which was published in The Journal of Virology, originally aimed to map how viral RNA segments are transported within cells to create new viral particles.
The team used H1N1 and H3N2 viruses isolated from the nasal passages of positive patients in 2022.
Clinical treatments remain identical for both primary strains of the flu virus. (iStock)
During the investigation, the team unexpectedly stumbled upon a cellular pathway that blocked the virus from entering lung cells, SWNS reported.
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The data revealed that when a specific human protein called Rab11B was depleted, H3N2 viruses failed to enter human lung cells. H1N1 viruses were completely unaffected.
Using reverse genetics, the team mapped this defect and uncovered a brand-new, H3N2-specific role for Rab11B during viral entry.
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This discovery challenged the scientific assumption that all flu viruses enter cells the same way.
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“Viruses are like pirates from different countries hijacking someone’s ship,” Bruce said. “Different viruses, like different types of pirates, use different methods to get onboard.”
This discovery challenged the scientific assumption that all flu viruses enter cells the same way. (iStock)
“We had previously thought that all flu viruses used the same way to get into a cell, but we discovered that this is not true,” she went on. “H1N1 and H3N2 need different proteins to get in, and if you get rid of the right protein, a specific virus can’t get in.”
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While these findings identify a critical cellular pathway for viral entry, the study was conducted using isolated cells, the researchers acknowledged.
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Further research is needed to determine whether blocking the protein is safe and effective within a live, complex human respiratory system.
Bruce and the team hope to conduct further research to determine whether this Rab11B-dependency is a fundamental property of H3N2, or if it’s a trait unique to currently circulating flu strains.
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Eating processed meat like ham, sausage and bacon may be linked to a higher risk of certain types of cancer, according to new research.
While health organizations have already confirmed that processed meat can contribute to colon cancer, this study looked closer at cancers in the upper digestive tract, where the link has historically been less clear.
To understand these connections, researchers from the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC), one of the world’s largest long-term nutrition and cancer cohorts, tracked the health and diets of 450,112 people across Europe for an average of 14 years.
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The study group included 131,426 men and 318,686 women, according to the study’s press release.
During the follow-up period, 876 people developed stomach cancer and 215 people developed esophageal adenocarcinoma, which is cancer of the tube connecting the mouth to the stomach.
For female participants, eating both processed meat and white meat was linked to an increased risk of developing the disease. (iStock)
Researchers tracked where the stomach cancers grew, separating them into the upper part of the stomach near the throat and the lower part of the stomach.
The researchers also sorted the tumors into two categories based on how the cancer cells appeared under a microscope: intestinal, which forms more organized structures, and diffuse, in which the cells are more scattered throughout the tissue.
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After adjusting for other lifestyle factors, the researchers found that for every extra 30 grams of processed meat a person ate per day, their overall risk of stomach cancer went up by 9%. Eating that same extra 30 grams a day was also linked to a 13% higher risk of esophageal adenocarcinoma.
A standard single slice of regular deli-sliced ham or lunch meat averages around 28 grams, according to USDA data and nutritional tracking databases.
An extra 20 grams of white meat, such as chicken and turkey, was linked to a 12% higher risk of cancer in the main body of the stomach. (iStock)
An extra 20 grams of white meat, such as chicken or turkey, was linked to a 12% higher risk of cancer in the main body of the stomach, the researchers noted.
The study also revealed differences between men and women. For male participants, only processed meat showed a clear, statistically significant link to a higher risk of stomach cancer. For female participants, however, eating both processed meat and white meat was linked to an increased risk.
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These findings align with global health benchmarks, particularly those established by the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer.
The agency has long classified processed meat as a known human carcinogen, primarily due to its strong, well-documented links to colorectal cancer.
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However, health organizations have also consistently pointed to a potential, yet less definitive, relationship between these meats and cancers of the stomach.
Eating 30 grams of processed meat a day, or the equivalent to one slice of ham, was linked to a 13% higher risk of esophageal adenocarcinoma. (iStock)
Further scientific investigation is needed to confirm the findings and to account for other underlying risk factors, such as certain stomach infections, which could interact with dietary habits.
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A key limitation of the study is its reliance on self-reported diets, which can sometimes lead to inaccuracies in how participants recall their meat consumption over time, the researchers noted.
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The findings were published in the International Journal of Cancer.
Fox News Digital reached out to the researchers requesting comment.
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