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Semaglutide supply shortfall fuels demand for alternatives

By Brian Buntz | July 8, 2022

Novo Nordisk in the Drug Discovery & Development Pharma 50Novo Nordisk (NYSE:NVO) continues to face supply shortages for its Wegovy (semaglutide) pens, which are FDA approved for weight management. 

Against that backdrop, a growing number of companies have begun selling compounded versions of the drug. 

Drug compounding involves “combining, mixing, or altering ingredients to create a medication tailored to the needs of an individual patient,” according to the FDA. Compounding drugs are not FDA approved, nor does the agency validate their safety, effectiveness or quality.

Novo Nordisk notes on its website that it has “become aware of an increasing trend in compounding pharmacies purporting to have availability of Wegovy or semaglutide.” The company adds that it “does not sell Wegovy (or its active ingredient, semaglutide) for the purposes of compounding with other products.” Novo Nordisk is the only company with FDA approval related to Wegovy, which is offered as a prescription-based single-use pen.

A number of companies have responded by selling compounded formulations of the drug online, raising intellectual property questions. 

One company, Compounding Pharmacy of America, notes that it “offers our advanced semaglutide product in the form of a weekly subcutaneous injection.” This version of the drug is mixed with L-carnitine. 

The Ohio-based aesthetic medical center Cru Clinic promotes a compounded version of the drug to residents of the company’s home state. 

Other purveyors of compounded semaglutide, such as Galleria Medical Pharmacy, combine the drug with vitamin B-12. 

The Alliance for Pharmacy Compounding notes on its website that it “cannot compound a copy of a commercially available medication,” but added, “if a patient needed semaglutide in a nasal spray, for example, it would be legal to compound it.”

While Wegovy costs about $1,600 per month before insurance, compounders offer prices substantially lower. Cru Clinic, for instance, provides a monthly supply of semaglutide for $300.  

Many physicians have raised concerns about the trend. Dr. Fatima Cody Stanford, an obesity doctor at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, told MedPage Today: “My assumption would be that they’re making an agent that’s close,” but that “I can’t chance anything with my patients. I need to see the data to support the use.”


Filed Under: Metabolic disease/endicrinology
Tagged With: compounding, Novo Nordisk, semaglutide, Wegovy
 

About The Author

Brian Buntz

As the pharma and biotech editor at WTWH Media, Brian has almost two decades of experience in B2B media, with a focus on healthcare and technology. While he has long maintained a keen interest in AI, more recently Brian has made making data analysis a central focus, and is exploring tools ranging from NLP and clustering to predictive analytics.

Throughout his 18-year tenure, Brian has covered an array of life science topics, including clinical trials, medical devices, and drug discovery and development. Prior to WTWH, he held the title of content director at Informa, where he focused on topics such as connected devices, cybersecurity, AI and Industry 4.0. A dedicated decade at UBM saw Brian providing in-depth coverage of the medical device sector. Engage with Brian on LinkedIn or drop him an email at bbuntz@wtwhmedia.com.

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