health secretary urged to tear up patent on breast cancer drug /

Published at 2015-10-01 02:01:04

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Medics and campaigners call on Jeremy Hunt to act after NHS decides Kadcyla treatment is too expensive[br]The health secretary,Jeremy Hunt, has been challenged by a coalition of cancer patients, and clinicians and campaigners to effectively tear up the patent on a breast cancer drug that has been dropped from the NHS because of its cost and allow the import or manufacture of a cheap generic copy.
The radical demand is reminiscent of what happened with Aids drugs in the early 2000s. The cocktail of antiretroviral medicines that now keeps millions of people with HIV alive was unaffordable in the developing world until a legal loophole was found enabling generics companies in India to build cheap copies.
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Source: theguardian.com