I am absolutely thrilled to tell you that AZD9291 has been approved by FDA! This drug finally has a name, Tagrisso (osimertinib). The drug is approved for people who have the EGFR mutation, which also has the T790M mutation. The official FDA press release can be seen at http://1.usa.gov/1H0iCbY.
Since there were only 411 people in the world in the Phase II trial that I was in, I feel extremely fortunate to have already benefited from this drug for the past 13 months. I am also thrilled that my own success has added a small fraction to the research that has proved this drug to be so successful that it was approved in the near-record time of two and a half years!
Better yet, I am now excited about all of the people who will now be able to extend their lives, and their quality of life! Today feels like a holiday!
To all of the researchers at Astra Zeneca, and all of the clinical research teams, including my own team at UCSD, I want to express my deepest gratitude for your extraordinary work. Because of you, I am still alive. Now, so many others will be able to say the same.
