AstraZeneca has halted a clinical trial of its experimental lung cancer drug Volrustomig after finding it was unlikely to help patients live longer than rival treatments.
The FTSE 100 pharmaceutical giant confirmed it stopped testing the combination of Volrustomig and chemotherapy following disappointing initial findings on overall survival rates.
Susan Galbraith, an executive vice president at AstraZeneca, described the decision to halt the trial as a disappointment for the company.
Pipeline setbacks and market reaction
The trial cancellation represents another setback for AstraZeneca and chief executive Pascal Soriot, following a series of recent pipeline hurdles for the drugmaker.
The company recently suffered unexpected failures with heart disease drug Wainua and rare disease treatment Ultomiris. In addition, US regulators rejected breast cancer drug Camizestrant.
Concerns over the strength of AstraZeneca's drug pipeline come as Soriot attempts to reassure investors after negative market reaction to merger talks with US rival Bristol Myers Squibb.
Despite the news, AstraZeneca shares edged up 0.9 per cent yesterday, though the stock remains down 15 per cent overall this year.
Axel Rudolph, chief technical analyst at investing platform IG, said: "AstraZeneca shares are finally showing some signs of recovery after a difficult few weeks. However, the latest setback in its pipeline is another reminder of the risks facing the growth story."
Rudolph added: "AstraZeneca needs positive clinical developments to rebuild confidence and turn today's bounce into a more sustained recovery."
Positive lung cancer trial results
Despite halting the trial, AstraZeneca will continue testing Volrustomig in other cancers, including cervical cancer, head and neck squamous cell carcinoma, and mesothelioma.
The Cambridge-based group also announced positive results from two separate late-stage lung cancer trials yesterday.
Its Enhertu treatment showed "a statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvement in progression-free survival" for patients with non-small cell lung cancer.
In another development, results from a late-stage trial of Tagrisso combined with Orpathys "reinforce Tagrisso as the backbone therapy" for another type of lung cancer.
