AstraZeneca PLC announced that Tezspire (tezepelumab) has been approved in Japan for the treatment of bronchial asthma in patients with severe or refractory disease in whom asthma symptoms cannot be controlled with mid- or high-dose inhaled corticosteroids and other long-term maintenance therapies. The approval by the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW) was based on efficacy and safety results from the PATHFINDER clinical trial programme. The application included results from the pivotal NAVIGATOR Phase III trial in which Tezspire demonstrated superiority across every primary and key secondary endpoint in patients with severe asthma, compared to placebo, when added to standard therapy.

Tezspire is the first and only biologic for severe asthma that acts at the top of the inflammatory.