Innovent's Masotide Receives Approval for Type 2 Diabetes Indication, Launches Exclusively on AliHealth

It is reported that on September 19, Innovent Biologics Group announced that its product mazdutide (brand name: Xinermei) had received approval in China for a new indication: glycemic control in adult patients with type 2 diabetes. The drug made its debut exclusively on AliHealth. Following the earlier approval of its weight-loss indication this year, mazdutide launched on AliHealth in July and has since become one of the fastest-growing GLP-1 products. As a premier launch platform for innovative specialty drugs, AliHealth continues to support pharmaceutical companies in enhancing the accessibility of innovative medicines, providing users with inclusive solutions covering the entire health management lifecycle.

China has the largest number of type 2 diabetes patients globally, with 140 million adult patients, accounting for approximately one-quarter of the global total. As a chronic metabolic disorder, diabetes can lead to severe complications such as cardiovascular disease, nephropathy, retinopathy, and neuropathy if blood glucose levels are poorly controlled over the long term, imposing a substantial burden on patient health and socioeconomic systems.

In recent years, the therapeutic paradigm for diabetes has gradually shifted from a sole focus on “glucose control” to a “patient-centered” approach, adopting a comprehensive management strategy for type 2 diabetes that simultaneously addresses glycemic control, weight management, cardiovascular risk factors, and hepatic, cardiac, and renal comorbidities and complications. The consensus report on the management of hyperglycemia in type 2 diabetes, jointly issued by the American Diabetes Association (ADA) and the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD), has formally included “weight loss” as one of the management goals for type 2 diabetes, recommending that weight reduction of 5%–15% be prioritized as a primary treatment objective for selected patients with type 2 diabetes.

Mazdutide is the world’s first approved dual glucagon receptor (GCGR)/glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor (GLP-1R) agonist for the treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus. It simultaneously addresses the two core pathogenic mechanisms of diabetes—insufficient insulin secretion and insulin resistance—and provides additional comprehensive benefits for patients with type 2 diabetes, including weight loss, as well as improvements in cardiovascular health, liver enzymes, and renal metabolism, thereby offering a more comprehensive and safe therapeutic option.

Notably, the newly approved Mazdutide injection pen offers significant improvements in both convenience and safety. Its concealed needle design helps alleviate patients’ injection anxiety, while its single-use mechanism—designed for immediate disposal after use—eliminates the risk of cross-contamination. Furthermore, the injection pen incorporates innovative X-bevel technology to deliver a smoother, painless injection experience, thereby further enhancing patient comfort and treatment adherence.

Leveraging its digital ecosystem capabilities, AliHealth provides end-to-end services for new specialty drugs such as mazdutide, covering market launch, patient education, online consultations, drug delivery, and medication management. In terms of supply chain, AliHealth offers customized temperature-controlled logistics solutions for drugs requiring cold-chain delivery at 2–8°C, such as GLP-1 receptor agonists, ensuring compliant storage and safe, efficient distribution.

Going forward, AliHealth will continue to leverage its value as a premier launch platform for new and specialty drugs, utilizing its data technology capabilities and ecosystem resources to enhance access to more innovative medicines.