Substantively, the Danish pharma will shift more emphasis toward diabetes and obesity adjacent conditions such as nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), cardiovascular disease and chronic kidney disease. "We will seek to move into adjacent areas, areas that are part of and yet go beyond diabetes," said Novo Nordisk CSO and EVP Mads Krogsgaard Thomsen during a conference call on October 31. "These include NASH-Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis proved to be kicked off by a Phase II trial with the semaglutide later this year, but also the buildup of the research pipeline. It also includes diabetic kidney disease, diabetic nephropathy and cardiovascular problems associated with diabetes." These moves come as Novo Nordisk has been hit by payer difficulties in the U.S. that have resulted in worse-than-anticipated performance for its modern insulins and in reduced product pricing.