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Natco Pharma has won another round in the long-drawn-out intellectual property battle surrounding the licensing of an anti-cancer drug.
The Bombay High Court on Tuesday upheld the compulsory licence granted to the Hyderabad-based company for German drug major Bayer’s patented kidney cancer drug Nexavar ( Sorafenib tosylate ).
According to a press release from Natco, the Nexavar issue dates back to March 9, 2012, when the then Controller General of Patents issued the first-ever compulsory licence to the company to manufacture an affordable generic version of Sorafenib tosylate .
The patent for the original drug is held by Bayer AG. In addition to Nexavar, there are two generic variants of the anti-cancer drug in the Indian market. While Natco Pharma’s drug is called Sorafenat, Cipla’s drug is called Soranib.
Affordable alternative In March 2012, the Intellectual Property Appellate Board had granted a compulsory licence to Natco Pharma on two crucial points: availability and affordability.
Natco Pharma’s generic version of the anti-cancer drug had been priced at ₹8,800 for a patient’s recommended monthly therapy, way below Bayer’s Nexavar, whose price worked out to approximately ₹2.8 lakh a month.
The Natco Pharma scrip rose 4 per cent on the BSE, closing at ₹1,061.70, after gaining ₹40.80.
Also read: >Bayer to defend IP rights on kidney cancer drug Nexavar
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