Eli Lilly's oral pill, orforglipron, helped maintain weight loss in patients switching from injectable versions of GLP-1 drugs, the company said on Thursday, in a boost to deliver a more convenient obesity treatment option.

An oral weight-loss pill would help Lilly further widen its lead over Novo Nordisk.

Both Lilly and Novo are awaiting U.S. regulatory approvals for their pills, with a decision on Novo's oral Wegovy expected later this year and on Lilly's orforglipron early next year.

In the late-stage trial, patients who took orforglipron for 52 weeks, after an initial treatment period of 72 weeks with Wegovy or Zepbound, showed superior weight maintenance compared to placebo, Lilly said.

Patients who switched from Wegovy maintained their previously achieved weight loss with an average difference of 0.9 kilograms (kg), while those who switched from Zepbound maintained it with an average difference of 5 kg.

The most commonly reported side effects were mild-to-moderate and gastrointestinal, consistent with previous studies on orforglipron.

Lilly's pill helped patients lose 12.4% of their body weight in a late-stage study. In a separate trial, Novo's pill led to a 16.6% reduction in weight.

Lilly was granted a voucher for its pill in November as part of a deal with the Trump administration to lower the prices of its weight-loss medicines for government programs and cash-paying patients.

According to a Reuters report, leaders at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration have pressed internally for reviewers to speed up their evaluation of orforglipron, after the company pushed for a faster timeline.

The agency could decide on Lilly's pill as early as March 28 if the new timeline is adopted.