New Lung Cancer Pill Reduces Risk of Death by Half, Study Shows.

AstraZeneca's drug, osimertinib, marketed as Tagrisso, has been shown to halve the risk of death from non-small cell lung cancer in patients with a particular type of mutation. The clinical trial included 680 participants at an early stage of the disease, and the result showed that taking the tablet resulted in a 51 percent reduction in the risk of death for treated patients, compared to placebo. The drug helps prevent the cancer from spreading to other parts of the body. Osimertinib is already authorized in dozens of countries for various indications and has already been given to some 700,000 people.