AstraZeneca lung cancer drug receives EU approval

AstraZeneca said its Tagrisso cancer drug had been approved in the European Union after positive results from a phase 3 trial.

Tagrisso is used to treat patients with early-stage epidermal growth factor receptor-mutated (EGFR) non-small cell lung cancer, AstraZeneca said on Friday.

In the trial, adjuvant treatment with Tagrisso reduced the risk of disease recurrence or death by 83% in patients with Stage II and IIIA disease.

Margarita Majem of the Department of Medical Oncology, Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau, Spain, said: "In the early stages of lung cancer, where tumour resection is possible but recurrence is far too common, adjuvant Tagrisso has shown an unprecedented disease-free survival benefit for patients with EGFR mutations.”

“I expect this approval will change clinical practice in the EU, as it heightens the critical importance of EGFR mutation testing across all stages of lung cancer to ensure as many patients as possible can benefit from targeted medicines like Tagrisso."