TROPION-Lung17: New Phase III Lung Cancer Trial Adds Medium-Term Upside Potential for AstraZeneca and Daiichi Sankyo

Daiichi Sankyo Company (DSKYF), AstraZeneca (AZN) announced an update on their ongoing clinical study.

TROPION-Lung17 Clinical Update: What Investors Should Watch in AstraZeneca and Daiichi Sankyo’s Next Lung Cancer Catalyst

Study Overview: The TROPION-Lung17 trial (NCT07291037), officially titled “A Phase III, Randomised, Open-Label, Multicentre Study of Datopotamab Deruxtecan or Docetaxel in Previously Treated TROP2-positive Advanced or Metastatic Non-squamous Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Without Actionable Genomic Alterations,” is a late‑stage study testing a new lung cancer drug against standard chemotherapy. It targets patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer who lack common genetic targets, an area with high unmet need. Success here could broaden treatment options and expand the commercial reach of both AstraZeneca and Daiichi Sankyo in a large, competitive oncology market.

Intervention/Treatment: The study compares two drugs given by intravenous infusion. The experimental treatment is datopotamab deruxtecan (Dato-DXd), a targeted antibody-drug conjugate designed to deliver chemotherapy directly to TROP2-positive cancer cells and limit damage to healthy tissue. The control treatment is docetaxel, a long-standing standard chemotherapy used after other lung cancer therapies stop working. The goal is to show that Dato-DXd offers better outcomes and a more favorable safety profile than docetaxel.

Study Design: TROPION-Lung17 is a Phase III interventional study, meaning it is testing whether a new treatment works better than current care in a large patient group. Patients are randomly assigned to one of two parallel groups: one receives Dato-DXd and the other receives docetaxel. The study is open-label, so doctors and patients know which drug is being given, but it is run in a “sponsor-blind” fashion to limit bias from the companies. The main aim is treatment-focused: to see if Dato-DXd improves key measures such as how long patients live without their cancer getting worse and overall survival compared with docetaxel.

Study Timeline: The study was first submitted in late October 2025, marking the formal start of regulatory tracking and site activation. As of the most recent update on December 17, 2025, the trial status is “recruiting,” meaning patient enrollment is actively under way but no results are yet available. Primary completion and final completion dates have not been reported publicly; these will signal when main outcome data and full follow-up are ready, and will likely represent important catalysts for share price moves once announced and reported.

Market Implications: For AstraZeneca (AZN) and Daiichi Sankyo (DSKYF), Dato-DXd represents a key asset in the growing antibody-drug conjugate segment, where both firms are already co-leading through other products. Positive Phase III data in this difficult-to-treat lung cancer setting could support a strong new revenue stream, extend the life cycle of their oncology portfolio, and reinforce the strategic value of their partnership. It would also strengthen their competitive position versus other large players in lung cancer, including Merck, Bristol Myers Squibb, and Roche, by adding a non–genomic-targeted option for relapsed disease. In the near term, the main impact is sentiment-driven: the start and active recruitment of this pivotal trial confirm management’s commitment to advancing Dato-DXd, which may support a premium in valuation for pipeline optionality. However, timelines remain long, clinical risk is high, and investors should expect volatility around future data readouts rather than near‑term earnings changes. Overall, TROPION-Lung17 adds another potential catalyst in the medium-term pipeline for both AZN and DSKYF, reinforcing the view of these names as core oncology growth stories.

The TROPION-Lung17 study is currently ongoing and has been recently updated, with further details available on the ClinicalTrials.gov portal.

To learn more about DSKYF’s potential, visit the Daiichi Sankyo Company drug pipeline page.