In a set back to multi-national drug major AstraZeneca, the Intellectual Property Appellate Board (IPAB) has dismissed the company's appeal against refusal of patent to lung cancer drug Gefitinib.
The London-headquartered pharmaceutical and biologics company's attempt to seek patent for Gefitinib was first turned down by the Indian Patent office in 2007 on the grounds of known prior use, while accepting the pre-grant opposition by the Hyderabad-based Natco Pharma Limited among others.
The Patent Controller had also dismissed the review petitions filed by AstraZeneca against the original order subsequently in May 2011. The company approached IPAB against the orders issued in review petitions.
"While observing that this Board had already taken a view that no appeal shall lie against the Controller's order passed in a review petition, even on merits, the appeal against the review petition fails," IPAB chairman justice Prabha Sridevan said in an order dated November 26,2012.
In its appeal the drug major argued that the the Controller had erred in various aspects of patent determination and also erred in concluding that the comparison test does not establish increased efficacy of the drug.
"In the impugned order(related to review petition), the controller had accepted the contention of the respondent that any error which requires long drawn process of reasoning can not be rectified in review... Therefore even if we entertain the appeal against the review, we don not find any error above in the review petition," the board said.