AstraZeneca has strengthened its lung cancer portfolio with an exclusive global licensing agreement for Dizal Pharmaceutical's oral EGFR inhibitor Zegfrovy (sunvozertinib), in a deal worth up to $1.5 billion.

 

Under the agreement, AstraZeneca will pay Dizal $600 million upfront, with up to $900 million in additional development, regulatory and sales milestone payments, alongside tiered royalties on worldwide sales. The company will gain exclusive global rights to develop and commercialise the medicine.

 

"AstraZeneca is a leader in treating EGFR-mutated lung cancer, and we are eager to add Zegfrovy to our world-class portfolio of innovative medicines for patients whose tumours carry exon 20 insertion mutations. With this agreement, we will bring a differentiated, oral targeted treatment to these patients with limited options across the globe," said Dave Fredrickson, Executive Vice President, Oncology Haematology Business Unit, AstraZeneca.

 

The deal comes as AstraZeneca continues to expand its oncology franchise, particularly in precision medicines targeting EGFR mutations. 

 

Around 80-85% of lung cancer patients are diagnosed with NSCLC, while EGFR mutations occur in approximately 10-15% of patients in the US and Europe and up to 40% of patients in Asia. Among these patients, roughly one in four carries an exon 20 insertion or another atypical mutation, where effective targeted therapies remain limited.

 

For Dizal, the agreement significantly broadens the global reach of a drug discovered by its scientists in China.

 

"As a leading global company with a strong lung cancer franchise, AstraZeneca will help ensure patients around the world can benefit from this innovation discovered by Dizal scientists in China. 

 

"Zegfrovy is the only oral targeted therapy for EGFR exon 20 insertion non-small cell lung cancer approved in the US and China for patients following prior systemic therapy," said Dr. Xiaolin Zhang, Chief Executive Officer of Dizal.

 

The partnership follows positive Phase III results from the global WU-KONG28 trial evaluating Zegfrovy as a first-line treatment for NSCLC patients with EGFR exon 20 insertion mutations.

 

AstraZeneca will pay Dizal $600 million upfront, with the potential for up to $900 million in additional milestone payments tied to development, regulatory and commercial achievements. Dizal will also receive tiered royalties on global sales of Zegfrovy.

 

The acquisition further reinforces AstraZeneca's strategy of building one of the industry's broadest oncology portfolios, adding Zegfrovy to a lung cancer franchise that already includes Tagrisso, Iressa, Imfinzi, Imjudo, Enhertu, Datroway and Orpathys, alongside an expanding pipeline of targeted therapies.