Astrazeneca shows disappointing results in trial of key cancer drug, shares dip
Shares in Astrazeneca dipped after the pharmaceutical giant revealed it had not reached the results it had hoped for from a trial of a key drug.
Patients treated with the drug Imfinzi on its own and combined with the tremelimumab antibody were not significantly more likely to survive than those treated with chemotherapy alone, researchers found.
The trials, which were carried out on late-stage lung cancer patients, are a disappointing result in one of the industry’s most anticipated clinical experiments.
However, Astrazeneca is already testing the same drug in two further trials on other stage IV patients, which it hopes may yield better results. It is expected to present findings next year.
Shares in the company fell by as much as 2.7 per cent to 6,148p as markets opened this morning, but quickly regained some ground.
Investors had been warned that results may not live up to expectations in July when early results showed insignificant rates of so-called progression-free survival, where patients survive without their disease getting worse.
Results from the trial showed a so-called hazard ratio of 0.76 for Imfinzi alone, and 0.85 when combined with tremelimumab. A score of one or more is considered equal to, or worse than, a placebo.
The drug is an important part of the company’s immuno‑oncology (IO) programme, which trains the patient’s immune system to take on cancer.
It has already showed good results in earlier stage III cancers, reducing death rates by almost a third over two years.
It works by blocking the PD-L1 protein on immune cells, which enables them to attack the cancer.
“We are disappointed that these results missed statistical significance,” said chief medical officer Sean Bohen.
“We remain confident in Imfinzi as the cornerstone of our IO programme and continue to evaluate its potential in ongoing non-small cell lung cancer trials, including Imfinzi and Imfinzi plus tremelimumab in combination with chemotherapy.”