365 needles to 52: Could once-a-week insulin finally make diabetes easier to live with?
The shift from daily to weekly injections for most diabetes patients could ease treatment burden not just for them but also for their caregivers.
For my colleague, every evening at 7 pm, the day came to a halt.
No matter how busy work was or what plans she had, she had to be at her 88-year-old father's home to give him his insulin injection. The timing wasn't negotiable. Her father, who has severe diabetes, could not administer the injection himself.
"There were days when I got delayed because of work or traffic, and he would sit anxiously waiting," she recalls. "I still remember one night when I was stuck in traffic and reached only at 10:45 pm. My parents were extremely worried. At his age, even delaying an insulin dose felt like a huge risk."
For years, this routine dictated not just her father's life but hers too.
That is why the arrival of the world's first once-weekly insulin in India feels like more than just another medical innovation.
"It means fewer injections, greater independence for patients, and enormous peace of mind for families like ours," she says. "I know there are countless caregivers who will feel the same relief."
NEW ONCE-A-WEEK INSULIN
This week, Danish drugmaker Novo Nordisk launched Awiqli (insulin icodec), the world's first once-weekly basal insulin in India, for adults with Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes.
Instead of injecting insulin every day, eligible patients can now take one injection a week, reducing the number of annual injections from 365 to just 52.
Awiqli costs about Rs 261 per week, or roughly Rs 1,045 per month for a patient taking 70 units a week.
Many daily basal insulin products in India cost anywhere between Rs 700 and over Rs 2,000 per month, depending on the brand, insulin type (human vs analogue), and dosage.
A larger 3 ml pen with 2,100 units is priced at Rs 7,883, offering a longer supply for patients on the same dosage.
So, for many patients, the cost of Awiqli is in the same range as existing long-acting insulin analogues, rather than being significantly more expensive.
However, the real advantage is convenience rather than savings.
MORE THAN JUST ONE LESS INJECTION
For many people, diabetes isn't difficult because of the medicine. It is difficult because it never takes a day off.
Every meal needs planning. Every trip requires carrying insulin. Every evening comes with the reminder that an injection cannot be missed.
For older adults, the challenge is even greater. Poor eyesight, shaky hands, arthritis or memory problems often mean they rely on a spouse, son, daughter or caregiver to administer insulin.
The disease becomes a shared responsibility.
"A daily insulin schedule doesn't just affect the patient; it affects the entire family," my colleague stresses. "Someone always has to be available."
A once-weekly injection doesn't eliminate diabetes, but it does reduce one of its biggest daily burdens.
A patient is often a confused soul and is stressed about his medicines and if we make the treatment easier the compliance is better, says Dr. Rajiv Kovil, Diabetes & Obesity Specialist at Zandra Healthcare.
He added, "Once a week insulin has the potential to make life much easier for many people with type 2 diabetes. Instead of worrying about an injection every day, patients need just one injection a week, which can improve convenience, confidence and, most importantly, treatment adherence."
WHY MANY PATIENTS DELAY INSULIN
India is home to one of the world's largest populations of people with diabetes. Yet many patients who need insulin postpone starting it.
According to Novo Nordisk, fear of daily injections delays insulin initiation by an average of seven to nine years in India.
Doctors say the hesitation is understandable.
Daily injections can be physically uncomfortable, emotionally exhausting and difficult to maintain over years or even decades.
Some people worry about injecting themselves, while others find it hard to follow a strict schedule because of work, travel or family commitments.
Missing doses can lead to poor blood sugar control, increasing the risk of complications affecting the heart, kidneys, eyes and nerves.
CAN FEWER INJECTIONS IMPROVE DIABETES CONTROL?
That is the question many diabetes specialists are now asking.
The hope is that reducing injections from 365 to 52 a year will make treatment easier to follow.
Patients who no longer have to remember a daily injection may be less likely to miss doses. Caregivers may also find it easier to plan around a weekly schedule instead of rearranging every evening.
However, doctors caution that once-weekly insulin is not a cure and will not replace healthy eating, regular exercise or blood sugar monitoring.
For people with Type 1 diabetes, it also does not eliminate the need for mealtime insulin.
A SHIFT IN HOW DIABETES IS MANAGED
Insulin is a hormone that helps move glucose from the bloodstream into the body's cells. People with Type 1 diabetes and many with advanced Type 2 diabetes need insulin because their bodies either produce too little of it or cannot use it effectively.
For decades, basal insulin has meant a daily injection.
The launch of a once-weekly version represents one of the biggest changes in insulin therapy in years—not because it works differently, but because it reduces the treatment burden.
For families like Pooja's, that burden has never just been medical.
It has meant planning evenings around injections, cancelling outings, worrying about delays and carrying the quiet responsibility of ensuring that a loved one never misses a dose.
A weekly injection cannot erase those concerns entirely. But it can reduce them from a daily obligation to a weekly one.
For caregivers who have spent years watching the clock every day, the launch of this weekly insulin could be the biggest breakthrough of all.
For my colleague, every evening at 7 pm, the day came to a halt.
No matter how busy work was or what plans she had, she had to be at her 88-year-old father's home to give him his insulin injection. The timing wasn't negotiable. Her father, who has severe diabetes, could not administer the injection himself.
"There were days when I got delayed because of work or traffic, and he would sit anxiously waiting," she recalls. "I still remember one night when I was stuck in traffic and reached only at 10:45 pm. My parents were extremely worried. At his age, even delaying an insulin dose felt like a huge risk."
For years, this routine dictated not just her father's life but hers too.
That is why the arrival of the world's first once-weekly insulin in India feels like more than just another medical innovation.
"It means fewer injections, greater independence for patients, and enormous peace of mind for families like ours," she says. "I know there are countless caregivers who will feel the same relief."
NEW ONCE-A-WEEK INSULIN
This week, Danish drugmaker Novo Nordisk launched Awiqli (insulin icodec), the world's first once-weekly basal insulin in India, for adults with Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes.
Instead of injecting insulin every day, eligible patients can now take one injection a week, reducing the number of annual injections from 365 to just 52.
Awiqli costs about Rs 261 per week, or roughly Rs 1,045 per month for a patient taking 70 units a week.
Many daily basal insulin products in India cost anywhere between Rs 700 and over Rs 2,000 per month, depending on the brand, insulin type (human vs analogue), and dosage.
A larger 3 ml pen with 2,100 units is priced at Rs 7,883, offering a longer supply for patients on the same dosage.
So, for many patients, the cost of Awiqli is in the same range as existing long-acting insulin analogues, rather than being significantly more expensive.
However, the real advantage is convenience rather than savings.
MORE THAN JUST ONE LESS INJECTION
For many people, diabetes isn't difficult because of the medicine. It is difficult because it never takes a day off.
Every meal needs planning. Every trip requires carrying insulin. Every evening comes with the reminder that an injection cannot be missed.
For older adults, the challenge is even greater. Poor eyesight, shaky hands, arthritis or memory problems often mean they rely on a spouse, son, daughter or caregiver to administer insulin.
The disease becomes a shared responsibility.
"A daily insulin schedule doesn't just affect the patient; it affects the entire family," my colleague stresses. "Someone always has to be available."
A once-weekly injection doesn't eliminate diabetes, but it does reduce one of its biggest daily burdens.
A patient is often a confused soul and is stressed about his medicines and if we make the treatment easier the compliance is better, says Dr. Rajiv Kovil, Diabetes & Obesity Specialist at Zandra Healthcare.
He added, "Once a week insulin has the potential to make life much easier for many people with type 2 diabetes. Instead of worrying about an injection every day, patients need just one injection a week, which can improve convenience, confidence and, most importantly, treatment adherence."
WHY MANY PATIENTS DELAY INSULIN
India is home to one of the world's largest populations of people with diabetes. Yet many patients who need insulin postpone starting it.
According to Novo Nordisk, fear of daily injections delays insulin initiation by an average of seven to nine years in India.
Doctors say the hesitation is understandable.
Daily injections can be physically uncomfortable, emotionally exhausting and difficult to maintain over years or even decades.
Some people worry about injecting themselves, while others find it hard to follow a strict schedule because of work, travel or family commitments.
Missing doses can lead to poor blood sugar control, increasing the risk of complications affecting the heart, kidneys, eyes and nerves.
CAN FEWER INJECTIONS IMPROVE DIABETES CONTROL?
That is the question many diabetes specialists are now asking.
The hope is that reducing injections from 365 to 52 a year will make treatment easier to follow.
Patients who no longer have to remember a daily injection may be less likely to miss doses. Caregivers may also find it easier to plan around a weekly schedule instead of rearranging every evening.
However, doctors caution that once-weekly insulin is not a cure and will not replace healthy eating, regular exercise or blood sugar monitoring.
For people with Type 1 diabetes, it also does not eliminate the need for mealtime insulin.
A SHIFT IN HOW DIABETES IS MANAGED
Insulin is a hormone that helps move glucose from the bloodstream into the body's cells. People with Type 1 diabetes and many with advanced Type 2 diabetes need insulin because their bodies either produce too little of it or cannot use it effectively.
For decades, basal insulin has meant a daily injection.
The launch of a once-weekly version represents one of the biggest changes in insulin therapy in years—not because it works differently, but because it reduces the treatment burden.
For families like Pooja's, that burden has never just been medical.
It has meant planning evenings around injections, cancelling outings, worrying about delays and carrying the quiet responsibility of ensuring that a loved one never misses a dose.
A weekly injection cannot erase those concerns entirely. But it can reduce them from a daily obligation to a weekly one.
For caregivers who have spent years watching the clock every day, the launch of this weekly insulin could be the biggest breakthrough of all.
