SC denies patent ; cancer drugs to remain cheaper

Mangalore Today/CNN-IBN

New Delhi, april1, 2013: In a landmark verdict, the Supreme Court of India dismissed a plea by the Swiss pharmaceutical giant Novartis on Monday for a patent on its cancer drug Glivec, paving way for more affordable life saving cancer drugs. Novartis had sought to overturn a clause in Indian Patents Law that restricts patent protection for newer forms of existing molecules, and the ruling could set a precedent for how other similar patent claims are treated.

Drug companies in India can now roll out a generic version of the drug, which can cost about Rs 10,000 a month - slashing the price by almost 92 per cent. Currently priced at Rs 1.2 lakh for a monthly dosage, Glivec is a major advance in treating chronic myeloid leukaemia, which kills 80-90 per cent of sufferers, and some gastrointestinal cancers.

However, the apex court stated that Glivec failed the test of innovation under Patent Act and that repetitive patent was not permissible. Novartis stock fell over 4 per cent after the verdict was announced late Monday morning.

"Novartis claimed that Glivec is more stable and more soluble but the Supreme Court said that is not a definition of a new novelty product and that is why it dismissed their plea. Novartis patented this product earlier in different countries, where product patent was available but it was not a patent available in here. So there is nothing they can do in that sense," said Prathibha Singh, a lawyer.

The verdict is a serious blow to Western pharmaceutical firms, which are increasingly focusing on India to drive sales. The patent case dates back to India’s denial of a patent in 2006 on the grounds that it wasn’t considered a new molecule, but an altered version of one that had been around for 15 years.

Ranjit Shahani, vice chairman and managing director of Novartis India Ltd, the firm’s Indian unit, had said cheap generics had an important role to play once drug patents expired, but the company was concerned about the non-recognition of patents that were ultimately needed to sustain drug research.

In 2012, India had revoked patents granted to Pfizer Inc’s cancer drug Sutent, Roche Holding AG’s hepatitis C drug Pegasys, and Merck & Co’s asthma treatment aerosol suspension formulation. They were all revoked on grounds that included lack of innovation.