AstraZeneca cancer drugs build as primary care shrinks

AstraZeneca's Tagrisso helped lung cancer patients with a specific mutation live longer when administered as the first treatment for the disease, outperforming the company's own Iressa and Roche's Tarceva in this setting.
Results from the FLAURA trial underscore the importance of oncology to the U.K.-based group's growth strategy. Tagrisso is now its biggest seller as asthma and COPD drug Symbicort fades thanks to pricing pressure.
Five years ago, Symbicort outsold all AstraZeneca oncology drugs combined.