BioCentury
ARTICLE | Product Development

Semaglutide’s Alzheimer’s miss: A case study in balancing ambition and evidence

Outcome shows limits of building big plans on circumstantial data, and why robust Phase II studies remain important

November 25, 2025 7:27 PM UTC

It would have been a game-changer if it had worked, but it’s not surprising that Novo’s semaglutide failed to slow Alzheimer’s disease progression.

The data from  Novo Nordisk A/S (CSE:NOVO B; NYSE:NVO) have been highly anticipated — a perfect synthesis of the hottest target in biotech, GLP-1, and the one of the biggest diseases facing developed countries, Alzheimer’s. ...