(Reuters) -U.S. drugmaker Pfizer is going “all in” to develop its experimental obesity drug and has been recruiting more experts in that area, Chief Exeuctive Officer Albert Bourla said at the JPMorgan Healthcare Conference on Monday.
“We are all in … we are building our teams … We are recruiting experts in obesity over the last, let’s say, 12, 13, 14 months. So that are helping us now make better and more sound decisions,” Bourla said.
Pfizer is testing a once-a-day form of its oral drug, danuglipron, and expects to offer patients a more convenient alternative to injections.
Bourla said that the company could begin a late-stage study of the drug by the second half of this year, if it succeeds in the mid-stage trial.
“We expect that we’ll have a competitive profile,” he added.
Pfizer’s drug could be the second oral treatment to be launched after Eli Lilly if “we stick to our timeslines,” Bourla said.
(Reporting by Bhanvi Satija in Bengaluru and Michael Erman in New York; Editing by Alan Barona)