Our approach to R&D

Focusing on quality, not quantity

Our drug discovery and development is guided by our 5R Framework, which champions quality over quantity, and has helped transform the culture of R&D and our business.

In the last decade, we have achieved an almost six-fold improvement in the proportion of pipeline molecules that have advanced from preclinical investigation to completion of Phase III clinical trials – from 4 percent to 23 percent. This improvement moves us well above the current industry average success rate of 14 percent in the 2018-2020 timeframe.*

*In-house data (2017-2021) and Centre for Medicines Research (CMR), a subsidiary of Clarivate (2018-2020).  

We have three therapy-focused R&D organisations who lead all our work, from discovery through to late-stage development. Oncology R&D is focused on cancer. BioPharmaceuticals R&D on Cardiovascular, Renal and Metabolism (CVRM) Respiratory and Immunology, Vaccines and Immune Therapies and opportunistically, Neuroscience. 

Rare Disease is focused on rare diseases across multiple therapy areas.

The three organisations work both independently and together, sharing Functions specialising in key scientific capabilities from medicinal chemistry to biometrics, patient safety to data science and artificial intelligence (AI), and clinical innovation to device technology. All of which help us accelerate discovery and development in our efforts to bring new medicines to patients.

Our R&D groups are unified in their approach, and united in their purpose to deliver life-changing medicines to people who need them most.

We know that however innovative our science is, however effective our medicines and delivery, to achieve all we want to achieve, we cannot do it alone. To address all the issues facing healthcare and achieve the scientific breakthroughs we aspire to, we need to work together, collaborating among ourselves and with others, bringing the best talent to bear on the toughest problems.

As a business, our teams are leading the way in creating open research environments that go beyond the usual collaborative models, with academia, biotech companies, industry peers, healthcare systems and governments. We have over 2,000 active partnerships and believe it to be a powerful source of transformational potential.

Our Open Innovation programme is designed to offer a permeable research environment where scientists both inside and outside of AstraZeneca can share their ideas and collaborate on projects.

We are committed to empowering the next generation of scientific leaders and to inspiring students across genders, races and geographies to consider STEM careers in healthcare.