Danish pharmaceutical giant Novo Nordisk announced Tuesday it is suing its main competitor, US-based Eli Lilly, for 'false and misleading' advertisements.

Novo Nordisk alleges that Eli Lilly is using 'intentionally selected outdated studies' that compare higher doses of its popular GLP-1 agonist drugs Wegovy and Ozempic to lower doses of Eli Lilly's Mounjaro and Zepbound.

The American firm's ads are 'deceptively presented those results as proof of broad, product-level superiority while burying or omitting critical clinical context,' the Danish group said.

'As new and more effective treatment options become available, people deserve accurate information that reflects the latest scientific evidence and helps them make informed care decisions,' said John F. Kuckelman, Novo Nordisk's general counsel.

At the heart of the suit is an Eli Lilly campaign that Novo Nordisk claims 'aired during recent, widely viewed global sporting broadcasts and on TikTok and Facebook, causing widespread confusion.'

The lawsuit has been launched in a US district court in New Jersey, specifically alleging breaches of fair competition laws and federal false advertising statutes.

These medications mimic the body's natural GLP-1 hormone, which is produced after eating and controls appetite. Both Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly have developed separate synthetic GLP-1 molecules used to treat type 2 diabetes and as weight-loss drugs, generating massive profits for both companies.

Source: www.dw.com