Echosens and Novo Nordisk Announce Partnership to Combat NASH

Novo Nordisk and Echosens, a liver diagnostics company, announced a partnership on June 22, 2022 to advance early diagnosis of non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and increase awareness of the disease NASH is a chronic metabolic liver disease that causes progressive damage to the liver, potentially resulting in end-stage liver disease and death.

According to an Echosens press release, the companies will collaborate to support additional clinical validation, generate real-world evidence, and promote adoption of non-invasive diagnostic tests for NASH. They are hoping to double diagnostic rates for people living with advanced to severe NASH by 2025.

“We are committed to driving change in NASH, to develop new treatment options and advance care for this serious, chronic disease. An important step towards realizing that ambition is to ensure that we can identify the people in need of care,” said Camilla Sylvest, executive vice-president, Commercial Strategy and Corporate Affairs, Novo Nordisk, in the press release. “But we cannot solve this challenge alone and through our partnership with Echosens, we hope to leverage our complementary skills to meet the needs of patients, healthcare providers and other stakeholders striving to address this ‘silent’ epidemic.”

According to the release, while the disease affects approximately 115 million individuals, it is estimated that nine out of 10 people living with NASH go undiagnosed. This is because NASH is a “silent” disease that lacks symptoms in the early stages.

Source: Echosens