WASHINGTON— The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on Tuesday upheld a ban on the sale of Roche’s anemia drug Mircera in the United States.
In addition, the court ruled that Mircera infringes on four Amgen patents for recombinant erythropoietin (EPO) and processes for making it. Amgen markets the anemia drugs Epogen and Aranesp.
However, the appeals court sent the case back to the U.S. District Court in Massachusetts for a new trial regarding the possibility that Roche has infringed on a fifth Amgen patent.
"We are pleased with today's decision," said David Scott, Amgen's senior vice president and general counsel. "The successful enforcement of intellectual property rights enables Amgen to continue to invest in truly innovative new medicines."
Amgen filed a lawsuit in November 2005 in the U.S. District Court to stop Swiss drugmaker Roche from making or importing Mircera into the United States. Amgen has said that Mircera violates six U.S. EPO patents related to Amgen’s anemia drugs Epogen and Aranesp.
