ASTRAZENECA PLC BOARD ANNOUNCEMENT

AstraZeneca PLC today announced the appointment to the Board of David R. Brennan as an Executive Director with effect from 14 March 2005. He will retain his current role as Executive Vice-President, North America, in charge of AstraZeneca operations in the US and Canada. Media Enquiries: Staffan Ternby, 08-553 261 07 Steve Brown, (London) Tel: +44 (0)20 7304 5033 Rachel Bloom-Baglin, (Wilmington, US) Tel: +1 302 886 7858 Investor Enquiries: Staffan Ternby, 08-553 261 07 Jonathan Hunt, (London) Tel: +44 (0)20 7304 5087 Ed Seage, (Wilmington, US) Tel: +1 302 886 4065 Biographical Details David R. Brennan, (51) - Executive Director, North America. Appointed as a Director, AstraZeneca PLC, on 14 March, 2005. Member of the Executive Board of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA). Chairman of the Board of the Southeastern Chapter of the American Heart Association. General Manager of Chibret International, France (a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc.) 1990-1992. Vice-President of Marketing, Business Planning and Development Astra Merck, Inc., and then Astra Pharmaceuticals LP 1992-1999. Senior Vice-President of Commercial Operations AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP 1999-2001. Executive Vice-President, North America, AstraZeneca PLC since 2001. Note to Picture Editors: A picture of David Brennan is available on Newscast, www.newscast.co.uk