A daily pill could help people maintain weight loss after stopping injectable weight-loss drugs, according to new trial data. The study, presented at the European Congress on Obesity 2026 in Istanbul and published in Nature Medicine, suggests that orforglipron tablets could reduce the need for long-term medications for obesity-related diseases.
The large-scale randomised controlled trial, funded by Eli Lilly, followed 376 US patients who had been on tirzepatide (Mounjaro) or semaglutide (Wegovy) injections for 72 weeks. Participants then switched to either daily orforglipron pills or a placebo for a year. Those who took orforglipron maintained significantly more weight loss than those on placebo.
For patients previously on tirzepatide, those on orforglipron kept almost 75% of their weight loss, compared with 49% for placebo. For semaglutide, the figures were almost 80% versus 38%. Improvements in blood pressure, cholesterol, and blood sugar levels were also maintained.
Dr Louis Aronne, director of the Comprehensive Weight Control Center at Weill Cornell Medicine, said the findings support treating obesity as a chronic disease. He noted that effectively managing obesity could reduce the need for other medications. Dr Marie Spreckley from the University of Cambridge highlighted that oral therapies offer a convenient alternative to injections for long-term weight management.
Dr Simon Cork of Anglia Ruskin University pointed out that injectable drugs are expensive, limiting their use. He said oral medications are cheaper to manufacture and could offer a sustainable option, though more research is needed. About 30% of UK adults are obese, and many on current jabs take multiple other medications.
