Viking Therapeutics Launches Phase 3 Trials for Oral Obesity Drug

The SUNRISE program consists of two primary studies, SUNRISE-1 and SUNRISE-2, each targeting an enrollment of 560 participants. Researchers will measure the percent change in body weight from baseline for patients receiving once-daily doses of 27.5 mg, 35 mg, 55 mg, or a placebo. While SUNRISE-1 focuses on obese or overweight adults with at least one weight-related comorbidity, SUNRISE-2 is tailored specifically for those living with type 2 diabetes.

This expansion into late-stage testing follows positive results from the Phase 2 VENTURE-Oral Dosing study. In that trial, participants experienced weight loss of up to 12.2% after 13 weeks. CEO Brian Lian noted that the oral formulation is designed to offer flexibility for long-term weight management, potentially serving as either an induction therapy or a maintenance tool. Viking is simultaneously advancing its subcutaneous formulation of the drug through the separate VANQUISH registration program, which has already fully enrolled approximately 5,500 patients across two studies.