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AstraZeneca PLC (AZN) is a British-Swedish multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology company headquartered in Cambridge, England. Formed in 1999 through the merger of Astra AB of Sweden and Zeneca Group PLC of the UK, AstraZeneca is known for its extensive research and development in the field of pharmaceuticals and biotechnology.
The company operates globally and generates a significant portion of its revenue from international markets, with the United States accounting for nearly one-third of its sales. AstraZeneca’s product portfolio includes a wide range of branded drugs across several major therapeutic areas such as gastrointestinal, diabetes, cardiovascular, respiratory, oncology, immunology, and rare diseases.
Recent achievements include a global license agreement with Nona Biosciences to develop preclinical monoclonal antibodies aimed at creating targeted therapies in oncology. The agreement could potentially bring Nona Biosciences up to $575 million upon achieving specified milestones, as well as tiered royalty payments on net sales. AstraZeneca continues to lead in the development of tumor-targeted therapies using cutting-edge technology.
Another noteworthy development is AstraZeneca's collaboration with AbelZeta Pharma to co-develop C-CAR031, a GPC3-targeted CAR-T therapy for treating hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The initial clinical results presented at the 2024 ASCO Annual Meeting showed promising safety and efficacy data.
Moreover, AstraZeneca has entered into a significant agreement with Compugen Ltd. to develop rilvegostomig, a PD-1/TIGIT bispecific antibody currently in Phase 3 trials for non-small cell lung cancer and biliary tract cancer. This partnership underscores AstraZeneca’s commitment to advancing innovative cancer therapies through strategic collaborations.
With its industry-leading capabilities, AstraZeneca is well-positioned to continue making significant strides in healthcare, providing effective treatments for a variety of diseases and maintaining its reputation as a global leader in pharmaceuticals and biotechnology.
AstraZeneca's FASENRA (benralizumab) has been approved in the US for treating adult patients with eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis (EGPA), a rare immune-mediated vasculitis. The approval is based on the MANDARA Phase III trial, which showed:
- Nearly 60% of FASENRA-treated patients achieved remission
- 41% of patients fully tapered off oral corticosteroids
- FASENRA's efficacy was comparable to mepolizumab, the only other approved EGPA treatment
FASENRA is now the second biologic approved for EGPA in the US. It offers a convenient monthly subcutaneous injection and has shown potential to help patients taper off steroid therapy. This approval expands FASENRA's use beyond its existing indication for severe eosinophilic asthma.
AstraZeneca's IMFINZI® (durvalumab) plus IMJUDO® (tremelimumab-actl) demonstrated unprecedented 5-year overall survival in advanced liver cancer patients in the HIMALAYA Phase III trial. Key findings:
- 19.6% of patients treated with the STRIDE regimen were alive at 5 years vs 9.4% for sorafenib
- Risk of death reduced by 24% compared to sorafenib
- In patients achieving disease control, 28.7% treated with STRIDE were alive at 5 years vs 12.7% for sorafenib
- More patients on STRIDE experienced deep responses leading to longer survival
The safety profile was consistent with known profiles, with no new signals observed. This data reinforces the use of this novel dual immunotherapy regimen for advanced liver cancer patients.
IMFINZI® (durvalumab) in combination with chemotherapy significantly improved outcomes for patients with muscle-invasive bladder cancer (MIBC) in the NIAGARA Phase III trial. The combination reduced the risk of disease recurrence by 32% and the risk of death by 25% compared to neoadjuvant chemotherapy alone. Patients received IMFINZI before and after surgery. These results were presented at the 2024 European Society for Medical Oncology Congress and published in The New England Journal of Medicine.
In a planned interim analysis, the event-free survival (EFS) hazard ratio was 0.68, with 67.8% of patients event-free at two years, compared to 59.8% in the control group. The overall survival (OS) hazard ratio was 0.75, with 82.2% of patients alive at two years, versus 75.2% in the control group.
IMFINZI was well-tolerated with no new safety signals. Adverse events were comparable between the IMFINZI and control groups. IMFINZI is also being tested in other bladder cancer stages and combinations.
ENHERTU® (trastuzumab deruxtecan) demonstrated significant clinical activity in patients with HER2 positive metastatic breast cancer and brain metastases, according to results from the DESTINY-Breast12 phase 3b/4 trial. Key findings include:
- 61.6% progression-free survival rate at one year in patients with brain metastases
- 62.3% central nervous system objective response rate in patients with active brain metastases
- 79.2% central nervous system objective response rate in patients with stable brain metastases
The safety profile was consistent with previous trials, with no new concerns identified. These results support ENHERTU's potential role in treating patients with active or stable brain metastases in HER2 positive metastatic breast cancer.
AstraZeneca and Daiichi Sankyo's ENHERTU demonstrated substantial clinical activity in patients with HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer and brain metastases in the DESTINY-Breast12 Phase IIIb/IV trial. Key findings include:
- 61.6% progression-free survival rate at 12 months in patients with brain metastases
- 58.9% CNS progression-free survival rate at 12 months
- 62.7% objective response rate in patients without brain metastases
- Safety profile consistent with previous trials
The results support ENHERTU's potential role in treating patients with active or stable brain metastases, addressing a significant unmet need in HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer treatment.
SOPHiA GENETICS (Nasdaq: SOPH) and AstraZeneca have announced a partnership to expand global access to liquid biopsy testing. They aim to deploy MSK-ACCESS® powered with SOPHiA DDM™ to 20 locations worldwide over the next 12 months. This liquid biopsy test, developed by Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, offers a less invasive alternative to solid tumor testing.
The collaboration seeks to understand how liquid biopsy testing can complement or surpass solid tissue testing. A real-world evidence study will evaluate operational benefits, including result speed and data quality. Since April 2024, 14 leading healthcare institutions have adopted the application. The partnership is expected to generate valuable real-world data for advancing cancer research and drug development.
The TROPION-Lung01 phase 3 trial evaluating datopotamab deruxtecan (Dato-DXd) in advanced nonsquamous non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) showed promising results. In the nonsquamous NSCLC subgroup, Dato-DXd demonstrated a 2.3-month improvement in overall survival (OS) compared to docetaxel (14.6 vs 12.3 months; HR=0.84). The safety profile was consistent with previous analyses, with lower rates of dose reduction and discontinuation compared to docetaxel. Additionally, the NeoCOAST-2 trial showed promising response rates for Dato-DXd in combination with durvalumab and chemotherapy in early-stage resectable NSCLC, with a pathological complete response rate of 34.1%.
Innate Pharma SA announced interim results from AstraZeneca's NeoCOAST-2 Phase 2 study presented at the 2024 World Conference on Lung Cancer. The study evaluates neoadjuvant durvalumab alone or combined with novel agents and chemotherapy in resectable, early-stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Preliminary data from Arm 2 showed that monalizumab added to durvalumab plus platinum-based chemotherapy induced a pathological complete response rate of 26.7% and a major pathological response rate of 53.3%, numerically higher than the approved regimen. The treatment demonstrated a manageable safety profile with no impact on surgical rate. Innate Pharma's Chief Medical Officer expressed excitement about the potential of extending durvalumab's clinical benefit with monalizumab in NSCLC patients.
An exploratory analysis of the TROPION-Lung01 phase 3 trial revealed that TROP2, measured by quantitative continuous scoring (QCS), was predictive of clinical outcomes in patients with advanced or metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) treated with datopotamab deruxtecan (Dato-DXd). In TROP2-QCS biomarker positive patients, Dato-DXd showed a significantly greater efficacy compared to docetaxel than in the overall trial population.
Key findings include:
- 60% of the biomarker evaluable population was TROP2-QCS positive
- Dato-DXd reduced disease progression or death risk by 43% vs. docetaxel in TROP2-QCS positive patients
- Median PFS was 6.9 months for Dato-DXd vs. 4.1 months for docetaxel in TROP2-QCS positive patients
- No new safety concerns were identified in the biomarker evaluable population
AstraZeneca aims to revolutionize cancer care with new data presented at the 2024 IASLC World Conference on Lung Cancer (WCLC) and the ESMO Congress. Key highlights include:
- IMFINZI® (durvalumab) shows statistically significant and clinically meaningful survival benefits in muscle-invasive bladder cancer in the NIAGARA Phase III trial.
- The TROPION-Lung01 Phase III trial results indicate datopotamab deruxtecan's potential to replace traditional chemotherapy for advanced nonsquamous NSCLC.
- Several presentations will emphasize early intervention in lung cancer, including the AEGEAN Phase III trial of perioperative IMFINZI for resectable NSCLC.
- Novel antibody drug conjugates (ADCs) like datopotamab deruxtecan and ENHERTU® show promising efficacy and safety data in various cancer settings.
- Advancements in the bispecific antibody program and new combination treatment approaches aim to improve patient outcomes.
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