FORM 6-K
SECURITIES
AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington,
D.C. 20549
Report
of Foreign Issuer
Pursuant
to Rule 13a-16 or 15d-16 of
the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934
For the
month of August 2026
Commission
File Number: 001-11960
AstraZeneca PLC
1
Francis Crick Avenue
Cambridge
Biomedical Campus
Cambridge
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United
Kingdom
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AstraZeneca PLC
INDEX
TO EXHIBITS
1.
Tagrisso+Orpathys improved PFS & OS in EGFRm lung
17 August 2026
Tagrisso plus Orpathys demonstrated
statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvements in
progression-free and overall survival in MET-driven EGFR-mutated
lung cancer after progression on Tagrisso
First global Phase III trial to show significant
progression-free and overall survival benefits in this
setting
SAFFRON trial results reinforce Tagrisso as the backbone therapy
across EGFRm lung cancer
Positive high-level results from the SAFFRON Phase III trial
showed Tagrisso (osimertinib) plus Orpathys (savolitinib) demonstrated a statistically
significant and clinically meaningful improvement in both
progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) versus
doublet platinum-based chemotherapy in patients with epidermal
growth factor receptor-mutated (EGFRm) non-small cell lung cancer
(NSCLC). Patients in the trial had tumours with high levels of MET
overexpression or amplification and had progressed on prior
treatment with Tagrisso.
Third-generation EGFR-tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) have
significantly improved outcomes for patients with EGFRm
NSCLC.1 However,
one in three patients' tumours will develop MET overexpression
or amplification, one of the most common mechanisms of resistance
on third-generation EGFR-TKIs.1-2 MET-driven
resistance is associated with poor prognosis, and there is a
significant unmet need for effective and well-tolerated treatment
options in later-line settings.2
Professor Shun Lu, Director of Shanghai Lung Cancer Center,
Shanghai Chest Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of
Medicine and principal investigator of the trial, said: "These
exciting results from SAFFRON represent a critical advance for
patients with EGFR-mutated non-small cell lung cancer experiencing
MET-driven resistance after osimertinib, a population with poor
outcomes and no biomarker-directed treatment options available that
are oral and well-tolerated. MET is one of the most common drivers
of progression on targeted therapy in this setting, and these data
underscore the potential impact of this novel osimertinib plus
savolitinib combination and the urgency of MET testing to
inform treatment decisions."
Susan Galbraith, Executive Vice President, Oncology Haematology
R&D, AstraZeneca, said: "These data demonstrate the clear
benefit of adding Orpathys to backbone therapy Tagrisso to address MET overexpression or
amplification while maintaining EGFR suppression. By combining Orpathys and Tagrisso, with its established efficacy, safety profile
and central nervous system protection, we aim to deliver the first
biomarker-directed, all-oral option in this setting to patients
across the globe. This further strengthens our leadership in
EGFR-mutated lung cancer, reinforcing our strategy to improve
patient outcomes across stages and through lines of therapy with
novel combinations."
Weiguo Su, Chief Executive Officer and Chief Scientific Officer of
HUTCHMED, said: "Overcoming MET-driven resistance after EGFR-TKI
therapy has been a long-standing challenge in clinical practice.
The SAFFRON global study further reinforces the robust efficacy
previously demonstrated in the SACHI Phase III trial that supported
approval in China, with the results providing clear evidence to
support global registrations of the Tagrisso and Orpathys combination. We are grateful to everyone who
supported this trial. Together with AstraZeneca, we look forward to
potentially bringing this landmark treatment to patients around the
world."
The safety profile for Tagrisso plus Orpathys was consistent with the known profiles of
each medicine, and there were no new safety findings. These data
will be presented at a forthcoming medical meeting and shared with
global regulatory authorities.
Tagrisso plus Orpathys is approved in China for patients with
locally advanced or metastatic EGFRm NSCLC with MET amplification
after disease progression on EGFR-TKI therapy based on the SACHI
Phase III trial.
Orpathys is being jointly
developed by AstraZeneca and HUTCHMED and commercialised by
AstraZeneca.
Notes
NSCLC and MET aberrations
Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death globally,
accounting for almost one in four (23%) cancer
deaths.3 Lung
cancer is broadly split into NSCLC and small cell lung
cancer, with
80-85% of patients diagnosed with NSCLC.4 Approximately
75% of NSCLC patients are diagnosed with advanced
disease.5 Additionally,
about 10-15% of NSCLC patients in the US and Europe, and 30-40% of
patients in Asia, have EGFRm NSCLC.6-8
MET is a tyrosine kinase receptor that has an essential role in
normal cell development.9 MET
overexpression or amplification can lead to tumour growth and the
metastatic progression of cancer cells.9-10 An
estimated 34% of tumours will develop high levels of MET
overexpression or amplification after progression on a
third-generation EGFR-TKI.1
SAFFRON
SAFFRON is a randomised, open-label, multi-centre, global Phase III
trial studying the efficacy of Orpathys (300mg twice daily) added
to Tagrisso (80mg once daily) versus doublet
platinum-based chemotherapy in 338 patients with EGFRm, locally
advanced or metastatic NSCLC with MET overexpression or
amplification whose disease progressed following 1st- or 2nd-line
treatment with Tagrisso. The trial
enrolled patients in 230 centres
across 29 countries, including in North America, Europe, South
America and Asia. The primary endpoint is PFS and key secondary
endpoints include OS and objective response
rate.
Patients were prospectively selected for SAFFRON using the high MET
level cut-offs identified in the SAVANNAH Phase II
trial. In
SAVANNAH, MET overexpression or amplification levels were
determined by two tests: immunohistochemistry (IHC), which detects
if cancer cells have a particular protein or marker on their
surface, and fluorescence in situ hybridisation (FISH), which
detects a specific DNA sequence from cancer
cells.
Orpathys
Orpathys (savolitinib)
is an oral, potent and highly selective MET-TKI
that has demonstrated clinical activity in advanced solid tumours.
It blocks
atypical activation of the MET receptor tyrosine kinase pathway
that occurs because of mutations (such as exon 14 skipping
alterations or other point mutations), gene amplification or
protein overexpression.
Orpathys is
approved in China for the treatment of adult patients with locally
advanced or metastatic NSCLC with
MET exon 14 skipping alteration, representing the
first selective MET inhibitor approved in
China. Orpathys also
received a conditional approval in China for the treatment of
patients with locally advanced or metastatic gastric cancer or
gastroesophageal junction adenocarcinoma with MET amplification who
have failed at least two prior systemic
treatments.
Orpathys in
combination with Tagrisso is
approved in China for patients with locally advanced or metastatic
EGFRm-positive non-squamous NSCLC with MET amplification after
disease progression on EGFR-TKI therapy based on the SACHI Phase
III trial. The
combination was also granted a temporary authorisation in
Switzerland for the treatment of patients with locally advanced or
metastatic EGFRm NSCLC and high levels of MET overexpression or
amplification who progressed on prior treatment
with Tagrisso. This
was based on results from the global SAVANNAH Phase II
trial.
Tagrisso
Tagrisso (osimertinib)
is a third-generation, irreversible EGFR-TKI with proven
clinical activity in NSCLC, including the treatment of central
nervous system metastases. Tagrisso (40mg and 80mg QD oral tablets) has been
used to treat more than one million patients across its indications
worldwide and AstraZeneca continues to
explore Tagrisso as a treatment for patients across multiple
stages of EGFRm
NSCLC.
Tagrisso is approved as monotherapy in
more than 120 countries including the US,
EU, China and Japan. Approved indications
include for 1st-line treatment of patients with locally advanced or
metastatic EGFRm NSCLC, locally advanced or
metastatic EGFR T790M mutation-positive NSCLC,
adjuvant treatment of early-stage EGFRm NSCLC and locally advanced,
unresectable NSCLC following platinum-based chemoradiation
therapy. Tagrisso is
also approved in combination with chemotherapy in more than 80
countries, including the US, EU, China and Japan, for 1st-line
treatment of patients with locally advanced or
metastatic EGFRm NSCLC.
There is an extensive body of evidence supporting the use
of Tagrisso in EGFRm
NSCLC, and it is the only targeted therapy shown to improve patient
outcomes across all stages of the disease.
In late-stage disease, Tagrisso demonstrated
improved outcomes as monotherapy in the FLAURA Phase
III trial and in combination with chemotherapy in
the FLAURA2 Phase
III trial. Tagrisso is
also being investigated in this setting in combination
with Datroway (datopotamab
deruxtecan or Dato-DXd) in the TROPION-Lung14 and TROPION-Lung15 Phase
III trials.
Tagrisso also showed improved outcomes in
early-stage disease in the NeoADAURA and ADAURA Phase
III trials and in locally advanced stages in the LAURA Phase
III trial. As part of AstraZeneca's ongoing commitment to treating
patients as early as possible in lung cancer, Tagrisso is
also being investigated in the early-stage adjuvant resectable
setting in the ADAURA2 Phase III trial.
AstraZeneca in lung cancer
AstraZeneca is working to bring patients with lung cancer closer to
cure through the detection and treatment of early-stage disease,
while also pushing the boundaries of science to improve outcomes in
the resistant and advanced settings. By defining new therapeutic
targets and investigating innovative approaches, the Company aims
to match medicines to the patients who can benefit
most.
The Company's comprehensive portfolio includes leading lung cancer
medicines and the next wave of innovations, including Tagrisso and Iressa (gefitinib); Imfinzi (durvalumab)
and Imjudo (tremelimumab); Enhertu (trastuzumab
deruxtecan) and Datroway in
collaboration with Daiichi Sankyo; Orpathys in
collaboration with HUTCHMED; as well as a pipeline of potential new
medicines and combinations across diverse mechanisms of
action.
AstraZeneca is a founding member of the Lung Ambition Alliance, a
global coalition working to accelerate innovation and deliver
meaningful improvements for people with lung cancer, including and
beyond treatment.
AstraZeneca in oncology
AstraZeneca is leading a revolution in oncology with the ambition
to provide cures for cancer in every form, following the science to
understand cancer and all its complexities to discover, develop and
deliver life-changing medicines to patients.
The Company's focus is on some of the most challenging cancers. It
is through persistent innovation that AstraZeneca has built one of
the most diverse portfolios and pipelines in the industry, with the
potential to catalyse changes in the practice of medicine and
transform the patient experience.
AstraZeneca has the vision to redefine cancer care and, one day,
eliminate cancer as a cause of death.
AstraZeneca
AstraZeneca (LSE/STO/NYSE: AZN) is a global, science-led
biopharmaceutical company that focuses on the discovery,
development, and commercialisation of prescription medicines in
Oncology, Rare Disease, and BioPharmaceuticals, including
Cardiovascular, Renal & Metabolism, and Respiratory &
Immunology. Based in Cambridge, UK, AstraZeneca's
innovative medicines are sold in more than 125 countries and
used by millions of patients worldwide. Please
visit astrazeneca.com and
follow the Company
on social media @AstraZeneca.
Contacts
For details on how to contact the Investor Relations Team, please
click here.
For Media contacts, click here.
References
1. De Marinis
F, et
al. Savolitinib plus
osimertinib in epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)-mutated
advanced non-small cell lung cancer with MET overexpression and/or
amplification following disease progression on osimertinib: primary
results from the phase II SAVANNAH study. Ann Oncol. 2025;36(8):920-933.
2. Bar J, et al. Prevalence, molecular characterization, and
prognosis of c-Met protein overexpression in a real-world cohort of
patients with non-squamous non-small cell lung
cancer. Acta Oncol. 2025;64:1544-1553.
3. World Health Organization.
International Agency for Research on Cancer. Lung Fact Sheet.
Available at: https://gco.iarc.who.int/media/globocan/factsheets/cancers/15-trachea-bronchus-and-lung-fact-sheet.pdf.
Accessed August 2026.
4. American Cancer Society. What Is
Lung Cancer? Available at: https://www.cancer.org/cancer/types/lung-cancer/about/what-is.html.
Accessed August 2026.
5. Chen HJ, et al. Long-term survival of advanced lung
adenocarcinoma by maintenance chemotherapy followed by
EGFR-TKI. Medicine. 2021;100(6):e24688.
6. Szumera-Ciećkiewicz
A, et
al. EGFR Mutation Testing
on Cytological and Histological Samples in Non-Small Cell Lung
Cancer: a Polish, Single Institution Study and Systematic Review of
European Incidence. Int J Clin Exp
Pathol.
2013;6:2800-2812.
7. Keedy VL, et al. American Society of Clinical Oncology
Provisional Clinical Opinion: Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor
(EGFR) Mutation Testing for Patients with Advanced Non-Small-Cell
Lung Cancer Considering First- Line EGFR Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitor
Therapy. J Clin
Oncol.
2011;29:2121-2127.
8. Ellison G, et al. EGFR Mutation Testing in Lung Cancer: a Review
of Available Methods and Their Use for Analysis of Tumour Tissue
and Cytology Samples. J Clin
Pathol.
2013;66:79-89.
9. Uchikawa
E, et
al. Structural basis of the
activation of c-MET receptor. Nat Commun. 2021;12(4074)
10. Wang Q, et al. MET inhibitors for targeted therapy of EGFR
TKI-resistant lung cancer. J Hematol
Oncol.
2019;63.
Matthew Bowden
Company Secretary
AstraZeneca PLC
SIGNATURES
Pursuant
to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the
Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf
by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.
Date:
17 August 2026
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By: /s/
Matthew Bowden
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Name:
Matthew Bowden
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Title:
Company Secretary
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