Un­der pres­sure from copy­cats, Roche sues Pfiz­er over Her­ceptin ri­val

As biosim­i­lar com­pe­ti­tion puts a squeeze on Roche’s rev­enue, the com­pa­ny is launch­ing a le­gal bat­tle against Pfiz­er and its copy­cat ver­sion of Her­ceptin, Roche’s breast can­cer drug, in hopes to slow or squash a ri­val med­i­cine.

Roche’s Genen­tech busi­ness is al­leg­ing that Pfiz­er’s $PFE copy­cat, called PF-05280014, in­fringes on 40 of Roche’s patents. In the suit, the Swiss phar­ma gi­ant is ask­ing for com­pen­sa­tion on lost sales on Her­ceptin, should the copy­cat get ap­proval be­fore Roche’s patents ex­pire.

Unlock this article instantly by becoming a free subscriber.

You’ll get access to free articles each month, plus you can customize what newsletters get delivered to your inbox each week, including breaking news.

SIGN UP LOG IN BECOME A PREMIUM SUBSCRIBER