AstraZeneca Advances Tagrisso Combination in Lung Cancer, Discontinues Volrustomig Trial

AstraZeneca (LON: AZN) issued two contrasting oncology updates on Monday 17 August 2026, revealing a win for one lung cancer combination therapy alongside the discontinuation of a separate late-stage trial.

The announcements come after shares in the Anglo-Swedish pharma giant closed down around 2% on Friday at roughly 11,460p, having pulled back from highs above 12,000p earlier in the month.

On the positive side, AstraZeneca and partner HUTCHMED announced that their Phase III SAFFRON trial met its goals, showing that Tagrisso (osimertinib) combined with Orpathys (savolitinib) delivered statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvements in both progression-free and overall survival compared with standard chemotherapy.

The trial targeted patients with EGFR-mutated non-small cell lung cancer who had developed MET-driven resistance after prior Tagrisso treatment—a notoriously difficult-to-treat population representing around a third of patients who progress on third-generation EGFR inhibitors.

Executives said the result reinforcing Tagrisso’s position as the “backbone therapy” across EGFR-mutated lung cancer, paving the way for the first all-oral, biomarker-directed treatment option in this setting, with global regulatory submissions expected to follow.

However, the company simultaneously confirmed it is discontinuing the eVOLVE-Lung02 Phase III trial, which had been evaluating its bispecific immunotherapy volrustomig alongside chemotherapy against pembrolizumab in first-line metastatic NSCLC patients with lower PD-L1 expression.

An independent data monitoring committee concluded the combination was unlikely to hit its dual primary endpoints of progression-free or overall survival, prompting the halt, though other volrustomig trials in cervical, head and neck, and mesothelioma cancers continue unaffected.

Investors will watch Monday’s open to see how the market digests both updates.