AstraZeneca (NYSE: AZN) reported updated exploratory results from the ADAURA Phase III trial showing that Tagrisso (osimertinib) reduced the risk of death by 47% compared to placebo in patients with early-stage (Stages II-IIIA) EGFR-mutated non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) after complete tumor resection, based on a hazard ratio of 0.53 (95% CI 0.38-0.75).

The data, presented at the IASLC 2026 World Conference on Lung Cancer in Seoul and simultaneously published in the Journal of Thoracic Oncology, showed that an estimated 74% of patients treated with Tagrisso were alive at eight years versus 58% of those receiving placebo in the primary population. In the overall trial population (Stages IB-IIIA), 79% of Tagrisso-treated patients were alive at eight years compared to 64% on placebo, with the drug reducing the risk of death by 48% (HR 0.52; 95% CI 0.39-0.71).

Roy S. Herbst, MD, PhD, Director at Dartmouth Cancer Center and principal investigator in the ADAURA trial, said: "These ADAURA findings show patients continue to experience meaningful, long-term benefit following early intervention with adjuvant osimertinib, with a 16 percent point improvement in overall survival at eight years versus placebo. This is especially impressive given high rates of crossover to osimertinib following disease recurrence."

The ADAURA trial enrolled 682 patients across more than 200 centers in more than 20 countries. The exploratory analysis included complete or partial extended long-term survival data from approximately 77% of patients still alive at the final planned overall survival analysis.

Separate real-world evidence presented at the same conference, drawn from a retrospective cohort study of U.S. patients with early-stage EGFR-mutated NSCLC, found that early discontinuation of Tagrisso before completion of the three-year treatment course more than doubled the risk of disease recurrence or death.

Additional data from the FLAURA2 Phase III trial, also presented at the conference, showed that Tagrisso combined with platinum-pemetrexed chemotherapy maintained a consistent safety profile over a median follow-up of 42.6 months in first-line advanced EGFR-mutated NSCLC patients.