Muscle-preserving drugs could generate over $30 billion in sales by 2035, TD Cowen says
About a dozen companies are racing to develop such therapies, most of which are being tested in combination with Lilly's Zepbound or Novo's Wegovy, both of which target the GLP-1 protein to help control appetite.
The initial Wall Street estimates for muscle-preserving therapies follow promising mid-stage results from experimental drugs developed by Regeneron (REGN.O), opens new tab and Scholar Rock (SRRK.O), opens new tab.
Investors are closely watching mid-stage data from Lilly's muscle mass-preserving drug, bimagrumab, which is scheduled for presentation at a medical conference next week.
Analysts have projected that obesity drugs sales could reach $150 billion a year by the early 2030s. The unmet need to preserve muscle will grow with the use of GLP-1 drugs for obesity, said TD Cowen analyst Tyler Van Buren.
Doctors have raised concerns that patients may experience a decrease in overall strength due to muscle loss associated with Zepbound and Wegovy, while experts suggest that more muscle can help patients maintain long-term weight loss.
Van Buren said that the first such treatment could launch by 2028, although regulatory challenges remain because these treatments must demonstrate additional health benefits to secure approval.
"We believe quality of weight loss and lean mass preservation ... is far too important for long-term health outcomes to be ignored and that this will be figured out," Van Buren said.
Some of the new drugs target the myostatin protein, which is associated with muscle growth, and are expected to see broader use due to their superior safety profile, capturing the majority of the market share, Van Buren said.
Other drugs target activin, a protein with multiple biological functions. Van Buren said that activin-based drugs will be reserved for patients at higher risk of losing strength, forecasting sales of about $5 billion by 2035.
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Telegraph
25 minutes ago
- Telegraph
‘Fat jabs left me so depressed it was like having The Deer Hunter theme on repeat in my head'
I can say without any doubt that I've never been depressed. So when I began using weight-loss injections three months ago it was a huge shock to find that rather than my usual unhappy-go-lucky self, I sensed something new. Something really bad. I was depressed and I could only assume it was a side effect of the drugs. Within a week of my first injection I felt a deep despair, seemingly from nowhere. Nothing had happened in my work or social life to trigger it. For a few days I searched for a cause, confused and concerned about where this blackness had come from. Suddenly, to an almost absurd, comical extent, existence seemed bleak and irredeemable. It was like having the theme tune to 1978's war drama The Deer Hunter playing in my head on repeat. After the initial shock, I had to somehow find a way to recognise this state for what it was: artificially induced – the mental equivalent of fake news. I have known lots of people with 'real' depression: the kind that keeps a person in bed for a week as if there were a weight tied to their body. The kind that waxes and wanes without reason, making it hard for those around them to empathise. I'd never known that feeling, yet here it was squatting on top of me day after day. Using weight-loss injections produced no other side effects. I have been sleeping well, I've not felt any nausea and I have undoubtedly lost weight, which was the whole point of this expensive experiment in the first place. Much of what has been written about the mental health impact of these treatments has been on either the positive effects of losing weight – improved self esteem – and how some who experience ADHD report a heightened sense of focus and concentration. Nowhere in the literature of the companies that make the treatments, or those who sell it, is there any suggestion that depression is a verifiable risk. Side effects are listed as nausea and vomiting, constipation, diarrhaea, reflux, headaches and fatigue. So much the same as a long stag weekend, rather than a continuous vigil at the edge of the abyss. The medications in question are known as 'glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists' (examples are semaglutide in Ozempic and Wegovy, and tirzepatide in Mounjaro). They were conceived as a treatment for diabetes and were later found to have beneficial effects fighting obesity. They may also help with cardiovascular disease and even neurological disorders such as Alzheimer's. They work by mimicking the effects of the hormone GLP-1, which helps regulate blood sugar levels and appetite. Dr Riccardo De Giorgi, Clinical Lecturer in General Adult Psychiatry at the University of Oxford is currently studying the effects of these drugs and admits that it is too soon to know if there is a possible link with depression, but suggests evidence points to a positive, rather negative, impact on mental health. 'The most recent studies available suggest that GLP-1 medications do not increase depressive symptoms or suicidality,' he says. 'These are based on drug trials where the patients were measured for depression 'scores' and psychological wellbeing, and they didn't show a negative effect overall. 'What happens if you are exposed to these drugs and you have a history of depressive episodes? In that regard, we don't have any evidence at all. There are now some more trials pending on depression, but it's very early days.' I asked around amongst friends and friends of friends (there are so many people using these treatments now that they aren't hard to find), and several reported very similar experiences to my own. One mentioned feeling 'oversensitive and on the verge of tears all the time'. Another said she felt so depressed and exhausted through emotional stress that she had to stop using it. She wanted to start using jabs again but was afraid of reliving her depression. A third said the worst days were 'shocking' but eventually she began to feel better – whether that was because the effects wore off or because she became more adept at coping she couldn't be sure. For me, the strangest feature of this self-inflicted ordeal was that I couldn't trust my emotions. It was like I was in my own matrix, where what I was experiencing felt real but was actually a simulation I had brought on myself – all while paying a monthly fee for the privilege. When something bothered me at work, there was no way to measure its real importance, which meant there was no reliable way to respond to it. How could I tell if a crisis at home was trivial, a total catastrophe or something in between? Thinking about the terrible state of Britain and the world suddenly felt deeply personal rather than an essential part of my job. Just hearing the first bars of a John Barry film score or recalling a random memory of my daughters set me off like Adele at an awards ceremony. I wondered if my new mood was connected to missing food, since I had become a one-meal a day person with no snacking. Maybe giving up eating for pleasure was getting me down? But while I love food like Keir Starmer loves free glasses, not even giving up crisps could make me feel this hopeless. The accepted routes for treating 'real' depression do not really apply to me since all I needed to do was stop the injections. I could hardly start taking anti-depressants to cope with the artificially induced depression brought on by other drugs. Therapy to treat it also seemed ridiculous, since it would be treating something that I had the power to stop. That was not a luxury afforded to those unlucky enough to experience the real thing. The therapists I asked about this were none the wiser, expressing confusion about how they might treat a patient who believed their depression had been triggered not by a pre-existing condition or circumstance, but by weight-loss injections. For me, feeling this way was my choice: a trade off for a thinner waist and a current drop of 1st 9lbs. Dr De Giorgi offered one explanation, yet admits that until he and others are able to conclude further research there is still no clinical evidence of a link between the drugs and depression. 'Some forms of depression are associated with high levels of inflammatory molecules, in which case the anti-inflammatory effects of GLP-1 medications would be helpful,' he explains. 'For other people, who are less prone to inflammation, the drugs might upset the balance in the body that is already in a sweet spot, so the drugs mean you have 'too little inflammation'. A degree of healthy inflammation is needed for the normal upkeep of brain cells. GLP-1 medications seem to be able to enter the brain, so we shouldn't be surprised if we find there are other implications such as mental effects.' Even if a link was ever proven, which is not likely as things stand, it's hardly going to provide much comfort. Most recently, the icing on this doom-laden cake – the kind a goth would get for his birthday at a Dracula festival in Whitby – was that I began to have nightmares. A mixture of Franz Kafka's brand of horror and Stephen King's It, they were like video nasties in which the lead character shouts: 'This isn't real!' and tries to wake themselves up. After a couple of these, I had to set a deadline to get myself off this stuff. No chiselled jawline is worth this. Kate Moss once famously said: 'Nothing tastes as good as skinny feels', but, for me, it was a case of nothing feels as bad as skinny tastes.
Daily Mail
35 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
I popped a pimple in the 'Triangle of Death' and ended up with a deadly infection
Popping a pimple may seem harmless, but one woman is urging people to be careful after she ended up in urgent care after squeezing a blemish in the deadly 'Triangle of Death.' Alisha Monaco recently revealed on TikTok that she tried to pop a cyst pimple just below her nose, but ended up in urgent care when the area got infected. The 'triangle of death,' where the zit was located, is the area between top of nose bridge to the sides of the mouth. According to Cleveland Clinic, 'It's one place where you should never pop a pimple, as it can lead to an infection in your brain.' In her now-viral video, Monaco explained that she popped the pimple, and within four hours, things got steadily worse as the area swelled and it became painful to touch. She explained that it got so swollen that when she tried to smile, only one side of her face was able to. Monaco told CTVNews she had tried to remove the blemish using a pimple poker, but knew something was wrong when her ears popped. Within hours, Monaco's condition had worsened and she developed symptoms of facial paralysis, so she knew that she needed medical help. 'I woke up four or five hours later and I just jumped up out of my bed because I could feel that I couldn't even smile on that side of my face,' she told the publication. 'My eye was a little bit swollen, getting blurry. My ear was all foggy.' Monaco went to urgent care, where she was prescribed four medications to threat the infection, with it ultimately taking three days to fully recover. Marianna Blyumin-Karasik, MD, told the Daily Mail that the 'Danger Death Triangle' is located on an area of the face that has a unique blood supply which communicates closely with the brain. 'This makes this danger zone a more vulnerable path for infection from skin to brain,' Dr. Blyumin-Karasik explained. 'So if we pick at the pimple in this danger zone, we may cause bacterial infection from the infected acne cyst to spread deeper into the skin and into this vulnerable blood stream.' 'This can cause infection of brain tissues and potential cavernous sinus thrombosis or clot of the major vain from the brain,' she continued. 'This can present as fever, headache, visual changes and facial paralysis.' Dermatologist Dr. Jodi Logerfo, from the Orentreich Medical Group, agreed, explaining that popping pimples in that area is 'dangerous' and puts you at risk for complications. 'It is extremely dangerous and should be avoided due to the high risk of serious infection that can lead to blood clots, as well as the spread of infection through the bloodstream, and other serious health risks,' she warned. 'You should never squeeze or manipulate pimples or other lesions in this high risk area.' Dr. Logerfo advised anyone who has what appears to be an infected pimple to seek immediate medical care. 'This is even more urgent if you have a fever, visual or neurological changes, or are in severe pain,' she urged. 'You should also seek medical care quickly if your symptoms are progressing and worsening rapidly.' To avoid complications, Dr. Logerfo said not to pop, squeeze, or use any sharp objects to drain pimples or cysts in this area, suggesting using appropriate topical treatments instead. 'You should have good facial hygiene,' she advised. 'Wash your face twice daily (morning and evening) with a mild cleanser that is appropriate for your skin type. 'Avoid using harsh products and do not exfoliate or scrub, which can cause further damage and infection. 'Make sure you keep your makeup sponges, brushes, and any other tools clean to prevent infection. 'Apply a moisturizer with nourishing hydrating ingredients like glycerin or hyaluronic acid. 'Use sunscreen with an SPF of 30 or higher and reapply every 2 hours when outdoors,' she concluded.
Daily Mail
37 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Woman who accidentally left tampon in for a MONTH lays bare horrifying symptoms
A woman who accidentally left her tampon in for a whole month has laid bare the gruesome symptoms that she endured while doctors struggled to figure out what was wrong with her. Reality star Savannah Miller, 24, who is best known for starring in season seven of Netflix 's The Circle, opened up about the 'traumatizing' ordeal during a recent chat with the New York Post. She explained that despite feeling sick and developing a horrific smell in her private area, medical professionals failed to uncover what was causing it across multiple visits. The TV star said it began after she put in a tampon during a night out with friends near the end of her period. But the next morning, she had 'forgot she put it in' so she never took it out. 'There was no blood and the string had disappeared, I didn't see it,' she told the publication. Savannah said the first thing she noticed was that a strange smell started to come from her vagina... and as the days went on it got so bad she compared it to a dead animal. 'It smelled like a rat crawled inside of me while I was sleeping and died,' she confessed. She thought the smell meant she was still on her period so she ended up putting in another tampon, which likely pushed the other further back. She soon started to feel run-down and itchy down there, so she went to her college clinic. Doctors tested her for STDS but everything came back negative. 'They thought it was just [bacterial vaginosis], but I knew there was no way people walked around with BV smelling like this,' added the 24-year-old. It wasn't until her third visit when the doctor noticed traces of cotton in her urine that they realized what was causing her mysterious illness - nearly a month after she initially put the tampon in. 'It was so far up in my cervix there was no shot I was gonna see it. The doctor had to fish it out of my ovaries,' she said. In the end, she said she's grateful she didn't develop Toxic Shock Syndrome, and she hopes that speaking out about it will help prevent others from suffering the same fate. Back in June, Shannon Toner spoke exclusively to the Daily Mail about how she almost died from using a tampon at age 15 after developing Toxic Shock Syndrome. 'It put me in a coma and nearly took my life - I hadn't even had my period for a full year yet,' Shannon, who was on a family vacation at the time, explained. Shannon revealed she began to feel ill in the evening after she landed, but she assumed it was just jet lag and tried to sleep it off. But she woke up the next day with extreme symptoms, including: vomiting, diarrhea, a fever, and fatigue. 'I was brought to the doctor that afternoon, given a shot for nausea, and sent home,' she continued. 'I continued to deteriorate and was brought back to the doctor later that same day.' 'My last memory is collapsing in the office and laying on the ground because it hurt too much to sit up,' she recalled. 'My heart rate was extremely high, my blood pressure was dangerously low, and I was rushed to the ICU. I didn't wake up until a few days later.' Toxic Shock Syndrome is a 'rare complication of certain types of bacterial infections,' according to MayoClinic. It can be fatal. 'Risk factors for toxic shock syndrome include skin wounds, surgery, and the use of tampons and other devices, such as menstrual cups and birth control sponges or diaphragms.' Shannon was given a 50/50 chance of survival and while she ultimately recovered, she suffered from the after effects for years. 'I dealt with memory loss, anxiety, attention issues, and depression. My periods also became extremely painful,' she explained.
