Shim Young-suk of Ajou University Hospital discusses Novo Nordisk’s once-weekly growth hormone drug Sogroya. (Courtesy of Novo Nordisk Pharma Korea)
Novo Nordisk Pharma Korea said Thursday its once-weekly growth hormone therapy Sogroya has received national health insurance reimbursement in Korea for children and adults with growth hormone deficiency.
The company held a media session in Seoul to discuss the clinical value of long-acting growth hormone therapy and its use in patients who need long-term treatment.
Sogroya (somapacitan) is approved for children and adults with growth hormone deficiency. The disease is caused by insufficient secretion of growth hormone and can lead to very short stature, slow growth velocity and delayed bone age in children.
Shim Young-suk, a pediatric endocrinologist at Ajou University Hospital, said early and continuous treatment is important.
“Growth hormone deficiency is treated by administering growth hormone early, and earlier treatment can lead to better outcomes,” Shim said during the session. “Because it is long-term treatment, adherence has an important effect on outcomes.”
Most existing growth hormone treatments are given as daily injections, often at home by caregivers. Novo said daily treatment can create burden for patients and families because of frequent injections, injection pain, preparation steps and storage requirements.
Sogroya is designed for once-weekly dosing. Moving from daily injections to weekly treatment could reduce the number of injections by at least 260 a year, according to Shim.
He cited a study in which children who missed two or more injections a week had annual height velocity about 41 percent lower than those who did not miss doses.
In the phase 3 REAL4 trial, Sogroya met its noninferiority goal, with annualized height velocity of 11.2 centimeters at week 52, compared with 11.7 centimeters for daily growth hormone.
Novo Nordisk said other growth measures and IGF-1 levels were similar between groups, while injection-site reactions occurred in 5.3 percent of Sogroya patients.
“Growth hormone treatment continues for a long time, so adherence has a significant effect on treatment results,” Shim said. “The treatment paradigm is shifting from daily injections to long-acting growth hormone therapy that can be given once a week.”
He added that daily shots may still be preferred for some newly diagnosed children.
Shim also said growth hormone therapy should be diagnosed and prescribed by specialists.
“Growth hormone products should be prescribed by pediatricians or endocrinologists who specialize in endocrinology,” he said. “Whenever possible, patients should receive care and prescriptions from a pediatric endocrinologist.”
Kim Ji-hye
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