[Ip-health] Caution over Swiss Firm Patenting Cancer-fighting Drug

[Joana Ramos]

FYI,  including commentary from National Organisation for Tobacco
Eradication (NOTE) India  on the broader picture:
>
> "The public health safeguards of India's patent law have a very real
> and human impact in our lives and those of millions of patients - not
> just people living with HIV, but those living with cancer, asthma,
> heart disease, mental illness," he stated.

Joana Ramos
---------------------------------------------------------

http://www.daijiworld.com/news/news_disp.asp?n_id=30866&n_tit=Caution+over+Swiss+Firm+Patenting+Cancer-fighting+Drug

Sunday, February 25, 2007 12:45:15 PM (IST)
Daijiworld.com
Caution over Swiss Firm Patenting Cancer-fighting Drug


Panaji, Feb 25: India's NGOs and hospitals working in the field of
cancer prevention and treatment have sought prime minister Dr Manmohan
Singh's intervention against patenting of life saving drug Glivec by a
swiss pharma company.

"Novartis pharmaceuticals sells Glivec, a life saving medicine for
patients suffering from 'Chronic Myeloid Leukemia' ( a type of blood
cancer) at prohibitive prices of Rs 1.20 lakh per month to be taken
almost life long. At the same time Indian companies give the same
medicine for Approximately 11 to 12 thousand a month which is affordable
for some patients and they can live a fruitful life," national
organisation for tobacco eradication (NOTE) India, general secretary, Dr
Shekhar Salkar told PTI.

Novartis is fighting a case in Chennai high court wherein it is not only
arguing to re-open the Glivec patent examination but also is seeking a
declaration from the the Madras high court in Chennai that section 3(d)
of the Indian Patent Act is not in compliance with TRIPS and that it
violates Article 14 of the Indian Constitution. Section 3 (d) is the
provision that protects against extension of patent monopolies on
essential medicines, Dr Salkar said.

Along with NOTE around 34 cancer NGOs and institutes including Indian
Cancer Society, Kolkata,Cancer Foundation of India, Mumbai's Tata
Memorial Hospital and others have signed the letter dashed to the Prime
minister.

" The price of Glivec, is well beyond the capacity of most patients.
Novartis is aware that only a very small percentage of patients in India
can afford this drug. Access to health care and medicine depends on
solutions at various levels. It is our duty to try and remove barriers
to the best of our ability," Dr Salkar, a practicing oncologist, stated.

"If the drug is patented than the patients with chronic myeloid leukemia
will have to die without medicine as it would be unaffordable for
majority of the people," he argued adding,"a patient who are buying this
medicine at a cost of rs 11,000 a month will either have to die without
medicine or shell out Rs 1.2 lakh per month which is absolutely
unaffordable."

"We express our grave concern over the Novartis' legal action in the
Chennai High Court to challenge the "Glivec patent rejection and
critical public health safeguards of Indian patent law", the NOTE
general secretary said.

"The public health safeguards of India's patent law have a very real and
human impact in our lives and those of millions of patients - not just
people living with HIV, but those living with cancer, asthma, heart
disease, mental illness," he stated.

Dr Salkar has said on the issue of constitutionality of the Indian
patent law, the government s constitutional expert, the Solicitor
General of India was not present in court on 15 and 16 February at the
time of arguments. "In the absence of the government's legal expert on
constitutional matters, Indian parliament's patent law and patient
groups access to affordable medicines is at stake," he said..

"Note India strongly support Indian Cancer Society and other NGO's in
convincing Indian Government to fight in the court with constitutional
experts so that the patients suffering from 'Chronic Myeloid Leukemia'
receives medicine at cheaper rates. This judgment is likely to have
consequences in the long term on many other medicines which are
essential for the treatment of many types of Cancer," he added.


--
Joana Ramos, MSW
Cancer Resources & Advocacy
7303 23rd Ave. NE
Seattle, WA  98115
206-229-2420
http://ramoslink.info/