ACLU Challenges Patents On Breast Cancer Genes
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On May 12, 2009, the ACLU and the Public Patent Foundation, a not-for-profit organization affiliated with Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law (PUBPAT), filed a lawsuit charging that patents on two human genes associated with breast and ovarian cancer are unconstitutional and invalid. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of four scientific organizations representing more than 150,000 geneticists, pathologists, and laboratory professionals, as well as individual researchers, breast cancer and women's health groups, genetic counselors and individual women. Individuals with certain mutations along these two genes, known as BRCA1 and BRCA2, are at a significantly higher risk for developing hereditary breast and ovarian cancers.
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) has granted thousands of patents on human genes – in fact, about 20 percent of our genes are patented. A gene patent holder has the right to prevent anyone from studying, testing or even looking at a gene. As a result, scientific research and genetic testing has been delayed, limited or even shut down due to concerns about gene patents.
As a result of the PTO granting patents on the BRCA genes to Myriad Genetics, Myriad's lab is the only place in the country where diagnostic testing can be performed. Because only Myriad can test for the BRCA gene mutations, others are prevented from testing these genes or developing alternative tests. Myriad's monopoly on the BRCA genes makes it impossible for women to access other tests or get a second opinion about their results, and allows Myriad to charge a high rate for their tests – over $3,000, which is too expensive for some women to afford.
The lawsuit, Association for Molecular Pathology, et al. v. United States Patent and Trademark Office, et al., was filed in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York in Manhattan against the PTO, Myriad Genetics and the University of Utah Research Foundation, which hold the patents on the BRCA genes.
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Association For Molecular Pathology (Jan Nowak, MD, PhD, President) About AMP >> Statement >> |
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American College Of Medical Genetics (Michael S. Watson, PhD, Executive Director) About ACMG >> Statement >> |
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American Society For Clinical Pathology (Barbara McKenna, MD, President) About ASCP >> Statement >> |
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College Of American Pathologists (Jeffrey A. Kant, MD, PhD) About CAP >> |
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Haig Kazazian, MD Biography >> Statement >> |
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Arupa Ganguly, PhD Biography >> Statement >> |
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Wendy Chung, MD, PhD Biography >> Statement >> |
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Harry Ostrer, MD Biography >> Statement >> |
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David Ledbetter, PhD Biography >> Statement >> |
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Stephen Warren, PhD Biography >> Statement >> |
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Ellen Matloff, MS Biography >> Statement >> |
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Breast Cancer Action (Barbara Brenner, Executive Director) About BCA >> Statement >> |
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Our Bodies Ourselves (Boston Women's Health Book Collective) (Judy Norsigian, Executive Director) About OBOS >> Statement >> |
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Lisbeth Ceriani Biography >> Statement >> |
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Runi Limary Biography >> Statement >> |
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Genae Girard Biography >> Statement >> |
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Vicky Thomason Biography >> Statement >> |
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Kathleen Raker Biography >> Statement >> |
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Elsa Reich, MS Biography >> Statement >> |
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