AstraZeneca (AZN) Investor update summary

Congress highlights

• ESMO and WCLC 2026 drew >140 abstract acceptances and >110 posters; ESMO featured four Presidential datasets and 38 oral presentations across 27 approved and potential medicines and >15 tumour types.

• Two Phase III datasets were described as practice-changing, alongside early data for the 2030+ pipeline.

Bladder cancer: VOLGA

• In cisplatin-ineligible or cisplatin-refusing MIBC, perioperative Imfinzi plus three neoadjuvant cycles of enfortumab vedotin improved EFS vs control (HR 0.51; median not reached vs 12.1 months) and OS (HR 0.58; median not reached in either arm).

• At 23 months’ median follow-up, 2-year survival was 78%; pathological complete response was 45% vs 10%, and ctDNA clearance was 60% among baseline ctDNA-positive evaluable patients.

• Grade 3/4 adverse events occurred in 30%; safety was consistent with known agent profiles, surgery was not compromised, and quality of life was maintained after surgery.

• The regimen was positioned as a potential new standard and an attractive finite-course alternative; practice and reimbursement may shape uptake versus EV-pembrolizumab.

• In the third VOLGA arm, adding tremelimumab produced EFS and OS HRs of 0.61 and 0.77; greater immune toxicity and lower enfortumab vedotin intensity may have limited activity.

Lung cancer

• SAFFRON in post-TKI advanced NSCLC with MET overexpression and/or amplification improved median PFS to 7.6 vs 5.4 months (HR 0.55) and OS to 17.8 vs 12.9 months (HR 0.68) vs platinum-pemetrexed.

• In China-only first-line SANOVO, Tagrisso plus savolitinib improved investigator-assessed PFS in the ITT population to 24.9 vs 13.8 months (HR 0.56); in MET IHC 3+ patients, median PFS was 24.5 vs 11.3 months.

• SANOVO OS HR was 0.48, with median OS of 44.5 vs 34.9 months; combination safety was consistent with established profiles.

• In ES-SCLC without progression after first-line chemotherapy plus Imfinzi, adding Imdelltra improved median OS to 21.1 vs 12.7 months (HR 0.42) and PFS to 7.4 vs 1.9 months (HR 0.34).

• DeLLphi-305 benefit extended across predefined subgroups, including patients with brain or liver metastases; safety was manageable, with infrequent discontinuations and no treatment-related fatalities in the combination arm.