‘Game changer’ weight loss jab to become available on NHS
A “game changer” weight loss injection said to be popular among celebrities is to be made available through the NHS in England for certain people living with obesity, health officials have announced.
Thousands are expected to be offered the appetite suppressant Wegovy on prescription after the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) gave it the green light for NHS use.
Experts described the decision as a “pivotal moment” for the treatment of people living with obesity but others warned that the drug is not a “quick fix”.
A previous study found that people who are given the drug, which comes as a weekly injection, saw their weight drop by 12% on average after 68 weeks.
Nice has issued final guidance recommending semaglutide (also known as Wegovy and made by Novo Nordisk) for adults with at least one weight-related condition and a body mass index (BMI) score of at least 35.
The weight-related conditions that make obese people eligible include type 2 diabetes, prediabetes, high blood pressure, dyslipidaemia (unbalanced or unhealthy cholesterol levels), obstructive sleep apnoea and heart disease.
In some cases, people with a BMI of 30 and over may be able to access the drug, which is given via a pen injector.
People will only be given Wegovy on prescription as part of a specialist weight management service involving input from several professionals, and for a maximum of two years.
It is to be used alongside a reduced-calorie diet and increased physical activity, Nice said.Patients inject themselves weekly with the drug, which suppresses the appetite through mimicking the hormone glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) that is released after eating.
This makes people feel full, meaning they eat less and lose weight.
A previous study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, found that nausea and diarrhoea were the most common side effects but these were “typically transient and mild-to-moderate in severity and subsided with time”.
The drug will be available to NHS patients soon when the launch of the drug in England is confirmed by manufacturer Novo Nordisk.
The NHS in England is required to implement the Nice recommendations within three months of the product becoming commercially available.