KEY DETAILS
nltimes.nl reports a person fell into a coma for several hours earlier this year after using what was described as an insulin pen.
New York Post reports the FDA's Adverse Event Reporting System received reports of two deaths from bootleg versions of the unapproved drug retatrutide, including a death that occurred in July involving a 41-year-old woman with obesity who suffered cardiac arrest.
WIS10 reports that GLP-1 prescriptions rose 24% between 2018 and 2025, according to a study in JAMA Network Surgery.
Eli Lilly earned approval for Onswik, a diabetes medicine, in September, according to aol.com.
thenews.com.pk reports the European Medicines Agency's committee recommended approval of Eli Lilly's weight-loss pill Foundayo on Friday, October 16. This is a recommendation, not a final approval.
Novo Nordisk has warned that thousands of its insulin pens, stolen from a Dutch wholesaler, could be sold online as weight loss medication, according to nltimes.nl in a report published October 17. That is not the only safety story making news. The New York Post reported on October 16 that the FDA's Adverse Event Reporting System received reports of two deaths from bootleg versions of a weight loss drug. And on the regulatory side, thenews.com.pk reports the European Medicines Agency's committee recommended approval of Eli Lilly's weight-loss pill Foundayo on Friday, October 16.
nltimes.nl reports that Novo Nordisk warned the stolen pens could be sold online as weight loss medication, but they contain insulin rather than semaglutide, the active ingredient in weight-loss drugs. The company said using such medication without having diabetes can cause dangerously low blood sugar, according to nltimes.nl. nltimes.nl also reports that earlier this year, a person fell into a coma for several hours after using what was described as an insulin pen.
The New York Post reports that the FDA's Adverse Event Reporting System received reports of two deaths from bootleg versions of an unapproved weight loss drug. The first death, which occurred in July, involved a 41-year-old woman with obesity who suffered cardiac arrest, according to the New York Post. The outlet also reports that, according to Public Citizen, at least 14 people have been hospitalized after taking gray-market versions of retatrutide. The New York Post notes the company plans to submit retatrutide for FDA approval in early 2027, and that the FDA's review process could take up to a year before the drug reaches the market, if approved.
Away from safety concerns, WIS10 reports that more Americans are choosing weight loss injections over bariatric surgery, according to a new study. That study, published in JAMA Network Surgery, found GLP-1 prescriptions rose 24% between 2018 and 2025, WIS10 reports. Over the same period, national bariatric surgery use in 2025 was slightly less than half of its 2022 peak, according to WIS10. The study used health records of nearly 20 million patients with severe obesity and found nearly 95% of them received no treatment, WIS10 reports.
On the drug development side, aol.com reports that Eli Lilly earned approval for Onswik, a diabetes medicine, in September. The outlet also reports that in one Phase 3 study, retatrutide led to an average weight loss of up to 28.3% over 80 weeks. Earlier this year, Eli Lilly noted that 80% of prescriptions for Foundayo were for patients who had never taken GLP-1 medicines before, according to aol.com.
Lilly's oral obesity pill is also moving through European regulators. thenews.com.pk reports that the European Medicines Agency's committee on Friday, October 16, recommended approval of Eli Lilly's weight-loss pill Foundayo. This is a recommendation, not a final approval. The outlet reports that the committee's approval recommendation came after clinical trials showed patients lost up to 11% of their body weight. thenews.com.pk also reports that the EMA recommended a marketing approval for Foundayo for weight management and the treatment of type 2 diabetes in adults.
You can find the full reporting on these stories at nltimes.nl, the New York Post, WIS10, aol.com, and thenews.com.pk. Each outlet has more detail than fits in a single roundup.
Originally published on GLP-1 Nation.
Every Sunday, the weekly newsletter pulls the full week together: the news from GLP-1 Nation, the access updates from GLP1Laws, the latest GLP-1 Studio podcast episodes, and what changed in the Cozy Butter community.