AstraZeneca Shares Plunge on Drug News

AstraZeneca, Europe’s second-largest drug maker, said its lung cancer pill Iressa didn’t help patients live longer when added to standard chemotherapy. The news sent the company’s shares tumbling 12%, a record drop for AstraZeneca.

Iressa is the most advanced of a class of experimental cancer drugs called epidermal-growth factor-receptor inhibitors. The study results raised concerns about the prospects for this group of drugs, which is similar to medicines being developed by U.S. companies. As a result, shares of OSI Pharmaceuticals Inc., ImClone Systems Inc. and Abgenix Inc. also went down.

OSI fell $18.74, or 57%, to $14.05 on Nasdaq, the biggest percentage decliner on U.S. markets. ImClone fell 98 cents, or 11%, to $8.26 and Abgenix fell $1.95, or 20%, to $7.89.