On December 18, 2025 Daichii Sankyo reported that European Medicines Agency (EMA) has validated the Type II Variation marketing authorization application for DATROWAY (datopotamab deruxtecan) as monotherapy for the first-line treatment of adult patients with unresectable or metastatic triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) who are not candidates for PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitor therapy.
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DATROWAY is a specifically engineered TROP2 directed DXd antibody drug conjugate (ADC) discovered by Daiichi Sankyo (TSE: 4568) and being jointly developed and commercialized by Daiichi Sankyo and AstraZeneca (LSE/STO/Nasdaq: AZN).
The validation confirms the completion of the application and commences the scientific review process by the EMA’s Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use. The application is based on data from the TROPION-Breast02 phase 3 trial presented in a late-breaking proffered paper session at the 2025 European Society for Medical Oncology (#ESMO25) Congress. In the trial, DATROWAY demonstrated statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvement for the dual primary endpoints of overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) compared to investigator’s choice of chemotherapy as first-line treatment for patients with metastatic TNBC for whom immunotherapy was not an option.
"DATROWAY has shown the potential to replace traditional chemotherapy and improve survival for patients with metastatic triple negative breast cancer, the most aggressive type of breast cancer with one of the worst prognoses," said Ken Takeshita, MD, Global Head, R&D, Daiichi Sankyo. "This EMA validation represents the potential for a second indication for DATROWAY in breast cancer and another step forward in the approval process in Europe."
"Approximately seven of every ten patients with metastatic triple negative breast cancer are unable to receive immunotherapy due to the biology of their tumors or other factors. Chemotherapy remains the first-line standard of care for these patients," said Susan Galbraith, MBBChir, PhD, Executive Vice President, Oncology Hematology R&D, AstraZeneca. "With this validation of our application for DATROWAY, based on the pivotal TROPION-Breast02 results, we have taken a meaningful step towards bringing these patients in Europe an alternative to traditional chemotherapy for the first time."
Additional regulatory submissions for DATROWAY in this indication are underway globally.
About TROPION-Breast02
TROPION-Breast02 is a global, multicenter, randomized, open-label phase 3 trial evaluating the efficacy and safety of DATROWAY versus investigator’s choice of chemotherapy (paclitaxel, nab-paclitaxel, capecitabine, carboplatin or eribulin) in patients with previously untreated locally recurrent inoperable or metastatic TNBC for whom immunotherapy was not an option. This included patients whose tumors did not express PD-L1 as well as patients with PD-L1 expressing tumors who could not receive immunotherapy due to prior exposure in early-stage disease, comorbidities or immunotherapy not being accessible in their geography. Enrollment included patients with de novo or recurrent disease, regardless of disease-free interval, and those with poor prognostic factors such as stable brain metastases.
The dual primary endpoints of TROPION-Breast02 are PFS as assessed by blinded independent central review and OS. Secondary endpoints include PFS as assessed by investigator, objective response rate, duration of response, disease control rate, pharmacokinetics and safety.
TROPION-Breast02 enrolled 644 patients at sites in Africa, Asia, Europe, North America and South America. For more information visit ClinicalTrials.gov.
About Triple Negative Breast Cancer
TNBC accounts for approximately 15% of all breast cancer cases, with an estimated 345,000 diagnoses globally each year.1,2 In Europe, TNBC represents 24% of all breast cancer cases, with an estimated 83,000 diagnoses each year.3 TNBC is diagnosed more frequently in younger and premenopausal women, and is more prevalent in Black and Hispanic women.4,5,6 Metastatic TNBC is the most aggressive type of breast cancer and has one of the worst prognoses, with median OS of just 12 to 18 months and only about 14% of patients living five years following diagnosis.4,7,8
While some breast cancers may test positive for estrogen receptors, progesterone receptors or overexpression of HER2, TNBC tests negative for all three.4 Due to its aggressive nature and absence of common breast cancer receptors, TNBC is characteristically difficult to treat.4 For patients with metastatic disease with PD-L1 expressing tumors, the addition of immunotherapy to chemotherapy has improved outcomes in the first-line setting.9,10 However, for approximately 70% of patients with metastatic TNBC who are not candidates for immunotherapy, chemotherapy remains the first-line standard of care.11,12
TROP2 is a protein broadly expressed in several solid tumors, including TNBC.13 TROP2 is associated with increased tumor progression and poor survival in patients with breast cancer.14, 15
About DATROWAY
DATROWAY (datopotamab deruxtecan; datopotamab deruxtecan-dlnk in the U.S. only) is a TROP2 directed ADC. Designed using Daiichi Sankyo’s proprietary DXd ADC Technology, DATROWAY is one of six DXd ADCs in the oncology pipeline of Daiichi Sankyo, and one of the most advanced programs in AstraZeneca’s ADC scientific platform. DATROWAY is comprised of a humanized anti-TROP2 IgG1 monoclonal antibody, developed in collaboration with Sapporo Medical University, attached to a number of topoisomerase I inhibitor payloads (an exatecan derivative, DXd) via tetrapeptide-based cleavable linkers.
DATROWAY (6 mg/kg) is approved in more than 35 countries/regions worldwide for the treatment of adult patients with unresectable or metastatic HR positive, HER2 negative (IHC 0, IHC 1+ or IHC 2+/ISH-) breast cancer who have received prior endocrine-based therapy and chemotherapy for unresectable or metastatic disease based on the results from the TROPION-Breast01 trial.
DATROWAY (6 mg/kg) is approved in Russia and the U.S. for the treatment of adult patients with locally advanced or metastatic EGFR-mutated non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who have received prior EGFR-directed therapy and platinum-based chemotherapy, based on the results from TROPION-Lung05 and TROPION-Lung01 trials. Continued approval for this indication in the U.S. may be contingent upon verification and description of clinical benefit in a confirmatory trial.
About the DATROWAY Clinical Development Program
A comprehensive global clinical development program is underway with more than 20 trials evaluating the efficacy and safety of DATROWAY across multiple cancers, including NSCLC, TNBC and urothelial cancer. The program includes eight phase 3 trials in lung cancer, five phase 3 trials in breast cancer and one phase 3 trial in urothelial cancer evaluating DATROWAY as a monotherapy and in combination with other cancer treatments in various settings.
(Press release, Daiichi Sankyo, DEC 18, 2025, View Source [SID1234661550])