The British global pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca (AZ) announced its strategy to withdraw from research and development (R&D) for treatments in the neuroscience field, such as Alzheimer’s disease, and focus more on obesity and immunology.
On the 29th (local time), AZ noted during a first-quarter earnings conference call for investors that it would withdraw from the entire neuroscience portfolio and instead focus resources on core therapeutic areas such as obesity, dyslipidemia, and respiratory and immune diseases.
Recently, AZ halted the development of ‘MEDI1814’, an amyloid beta (Aβ) antibody candidate for early Alzheimer’s disease patients, and ‘MEDI0618’, an antibody candidate for migraine treatment. Pascal Soriot, CEO of AZ, said, “We cannot invest in every field,” adding, “It is better for specialized corporations to manage the central nervous system (CNS) area.”
AZ is also developing an oral obesity treatment in partnership with China's Eccogene, and this announcement suggests a strategy to focus on areas with a higher likelihood of development success.
Currently, the global obesity treatment market is dominated by U.S. Eli Lilly and Denmark's Novo Nordisk, with all available products being glucagon-like peptide (GLP)-1 injectable medications that slow digestion to create a feeling of fullness. These injections require patients to self-administer once a week, which can be cumbersome.
If an oral obesity treatment is developed, it could increase patient convenience and potentially boost demand. Moreover, it can be easier to mass-produce compared to injectable treatments, which could lower drug costs. The cost of existing obesity treatment pen injectors is more than ten times that of regular syringes.
AZ stated it is developing the oral obesity treatment candidate ‘AZD5004’ as a monotherapy while also considering combination therapies with existing low-molecular-weight compounds. It also highlighted having successfully completed Phase 2b trials for the oral hyperlipidemia treatment candidate ‘AZD0780’ and plans to enter three Phase 3 trials based on this.
AZ's revenue for the first quarter of this year was $13.588 billion (approximately 19.48 trillion won), an increase of 10% on a fixed exchange rate basis compared to the same period last year. In the same period, adjusted earnings per share (EPS) rose by 21% to $2.49. However, this fell short of market expectations of $13.68 billion (approximately 19.61 trillion won).
By sector, sales in the oncology sector reached $5.643 billion (approximately 8.09 trillion won), an increase of 13% compared to the same period last year. The revenue from biologics for cardiovascular, metabolic, and respiratory diseases also rose by 12% to $5.631 billion (approximately 8.07 trillion won). Sales of treatments for rare diseases amounted to $2.042 billion (approximately 2.92 trillion won).
Aradhanaa Sarinn, CFO of AZ, said on that day, “Most of our products in the U.S. are produced locally, so the tariff impact is manageable.” AZ invested $3.5 billion (approximately 5.17 trillion won) last year to expand R&D and production facilities in Massachusetts.