Glenmark Confirms Patent Challenge

On December 31, 2013, Glenmark Pharmaceuticals and its subsidiary Glenmark Generics confirmed that the US-based pharmaceutical firm Cephalon Inc. has filed a patent violation suit against Glenmark in a US District court on December 26, 2013. The complaint alleges that the company has been trying to commercialise the generic version of Treanda and has filed abbreviated new drug application (ANDA) with USFDA before the expiry of the patent. The complaint has been filed on US patent 8,445,524.

In the press release, Glenmark Pharmaceutical has said that the drug Treanda has generated sales worth USD 659 million (approx. Rs 4073.94 crore) for the 12-month period ending September 2013.

Glenmark Pharmaceuticals is engaged in the development, manufacture, sale and distribution of pharmaceutical products under business segments including dermatology, hormones, oncology etc. Its shareholding pattern includes 48.31% holding for promoters, 40.86% for institutional investors and the non-institutional holding is 10.82%.

As per data from IMS Health, Treanda (Bendamustine Hydrochloride), used for treatment of cancer patients for chronic lymphocytic leukaemia and other types of cancer. Besides the law suit filed against Glenmark, there are also suits pending against other generic applications which were pending with the US FDA (Food and Drug Association) for the drug Bendamustine.

Since company has not got approval for the generic from US FDA and hence no earning from this drug there was hardly any impact of the news on the company's stock price, which closed 0.37% up at Rs 534.