Updated January 21st, 2026

At One of the World’s Most Important Oncology Companies, AZ, Senior Leader Carlos Doti On How He’s Trying to Drive Progress For Patients

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Driving Earlier Intervention and a Patient‑First Approach

Astra Zeneca is one of the most important companies in oncology research. One of the leaders in AZ oncology is Carlos Doti who says the company strategy centers on a long‑term mission to help eradicate cancer by pushing innovation into earlier stages of disease, where treatment has the greatest potential to change outcomes.
He explains AZ is expanding across tumor types—lung, breast, gastrointestinal, and more—by moving from metastatic settings into adjuvant, neoadjuvant, and even earlier detection and screening efforts, emphasizing that “cure can come from prevention.”
AstraZeneca’s oncology portfolio includes several major approvals across tumor types, including the PARP inhibitor Lynparza for BRCA‑mutated ovarian cancer, the targeted therapy Tagrisso for specific NSCLC mutations, the HER2‑directed ADC Enhertu, the AKT inhibitor Truqap for HR+/HER2‑ breast cancer, and the immunotherapy Imfinzi, which helps the immune system recognize and attack cancer cells

From time to time, SurvivorNet speaks with leaders across cancer care to understand where progress is being made and how organizations see their role in advancing treatment. And the big question from many people in the SurvivorNet community is how to actually access these innovations more quickly. People with cancer need hope and better options.

So in that spirit, recently, we spoke with Dr. Carlos Doti, Vice President and Head of U.S. Oncology Medical Affairs at AstraZeneca, about where he sees momentum building in hematologic cancers—and how his company, the pharmaceutical giant, AstraZeneca is focusing its efforts in this space.

A Strategy Built on Frontline Expansion Across Cancer

Doti explained that at the heart of AstraZeneca’s oncology strategy is the commitment to keep innovation moving into the earlier settings, where treatment has the greatest potential to change outcomes.

“In solid tumors, we have a long history of success starting in the metastatic setting, often in the second line,” says Doti, “But very consistently, in every area where we have ambition, we move earlier and earlier.”

He sees their progression—from second-line metastatic disease to unresectable cancer, and then into adjuvant and neoadjuvant settings—as a defining feature of AstraZeneca’s approach.

“Now we see this across lung cancer, breast cancer, gastrointestinal cancers—really everywhere we work,” Doti says. “Every program is moving in that direction.”

He told SurvivorNet that their goal is straightforward and transformative: intervene earlier, before cancer progresses, spreads, or becomes harder to treat—when a cure is still possible.

Notable AstraZeneca Drug Approvals

BTK inhibitor Calquence (acalabrutinib) is used to treat chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), small lymphocytic lymphoma (SLL), and mantle cell lymphoma (MCL).
The PARP inhibitor Lynparza (olaparib) is approved for women newly diagnosed with ovarian cancer and with a germline or somatic mutation in BRCA1/2.
The targeted therapy Tagrisso (osimertinib) is used to treat specific types of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC)
Enhertu (trastuzumab deruxtecan) treats multiple cancer types by targeting HER2, a protein that accelerates cancer growth.
Truqap (generic name: capivasertib) for certain women with hormone receptor-positive (HR+), human epidermal growth factor receptor-negative (HER2-) breast cancer.
Imfinzi (durvalumab) is a type of immunotherapy drug known as a checkpoint inhibitor. It works by helping the immune system recognize and attack cancer cells.
- Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer (NSCLC): Enhances survival in advanced stages.
- Extensive-stage small cell lung cancer (SCLC): Imfinzi improves chemotherapy efficacy and improves overall survival.
- Advanced bladder cancer: In some cases where the disease progressed after chemotherapy, Imfinzi plus chemotherapy helped increase survival.
- Gastric Cancer: For some patients with stomach or esophagus cancers that are surgically removable, combining Imfinzi with pre-surgery chemotherapy has been more effective in eliminating cancer cells than chemotherapy alone.
- Head and Neck Cancer: Effective in certain cases, particularly in combination with other treatments.

WATCH: Imfinzi Is Proving To Be An Important Drug In The Fight Against Cancer

Looking Beyond Treatment: Early Detection and Screening

For AstraZeneca’s Carlos Doti, moving earlier doesn’t stop at adjuvant or neoadjuvant therapy. He told SurvivorNet they are investing heavily in early detection and screening and that preventing advanced disease altogether may be the most powerful form of cancer care.

“Cure can come from prevention,” Doti says. “If you detect cancer early, you can treat it in a curable setting—sometimes with surgery or limited therapy.”

Patient First Philosophy

Doti described AstraZeneca’s vision of redefining the company’s role within the healthcare system.

“I don’t want to tell a physician what to do,” Doti says. “My role is to share the data, put it in front of them, and have a discussion about what’s best today—while recognizing that many of these diseases will require additional therapies down the line.”

Cancer, he emphasizes, is rarely a single-decision problem. It’s a journey that unfolds over time, raising complex questions about sequencing, combinations, and long-term planning. “What’s the best sequencing? What’s the best approach?” Doti asks. “Those are ongoing conversations.”

Rather than positioning itself as a directive force, AstraZeneca aims to act as an advisor and collaborator—helping generate new evidence, supporting informed decision-making, and partnering with clinicians across the continuum of care.

“We see ourselves as part of the health system,” Doti says. “We want to be partners.”

“Our chairman said a few years ago that we need to stop thinking of ourselves as a pharma company,” Doti recalls. “We need to think of ourselves as a healthcare company.”

That distinction matters. Being a healthcare company, Doti says, means focusing first on patients—on what truly improves outcomes, not simply on what advances a product portfolio.

“Healthcare means taking care of patients,” he says. “It means being part of the discussion about what’s best for the patient—not just what’s best for the company.”

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