S3-E47.3 - Implications of Positive Drug Trials and Eventual Approvals on NAFLD Treatment

Send us Fan MailAfter a month of major Fatty Liver medical meetings, Jörn Schattenberg, Louise Campbell and Roger Green explore emerging stories that will shape the next 6-12 months in Fatty Liver disease. This conversation focuses on exciting data they anticipate for multiple different drugs. They also discuss the implications positive drug trials and anticipated approvals will have for NAFLD treatment.Roger starts by discussing the educational work Intercept was beginning before obeticholic acid received its complete response letter in 2020. He underlines the logic that doctors will be more eager to learn how to treat when given a reliable way to achieve results.Jörn expresses specific enthusiasm about the future of FGF-21s as implicated by the recent Akero Phase 2b results. Roger then notes the promising data and/or approvals on the horizon for four different modes of action. He suggests that with these, the ideas of combination therapy and disease regression or resolution may become real for the first time. Louise agrees about the promise of the medications. However, she expresses strong concern that the diagnostic and patient management structures will not be in place before the drugs arrive. This shortcoming will slow the ability to bring these benefits to patients. Jörn returns to the excitement about the drugs and the idea that significant amounts of data may come as soon as November’s AASLD meeting. As the conversation ends, the group begins to explore where bottlenecks in getting drugs to patients might exist.