Lilly wins another Alimta vitamin regimen patent lawsuit

US pharma major Eli Lilly (NYSE: LLY) on Monday announced that the US District Court for the Southern District of Indiana ruled in favor of Lilly that the lung cancer drug Alimta (pemetrexed for injection) vitamin regimen patent would be infringed by a competitor that had stated its intent to market alternative salt forms of pemetrexed prior to the patent's expiration in May 2022.

The ruling came in the case of Eli Lilly and Company v Apotex Inc, and means Apotex, a Canada-based generics drugmaker, will be prevented from launching its alternative salt form of pemetrexed until the patent expires. Lilly said it expects Apotex to appeal the ruling.

If the patent is ultimately upheld through all remaining challenges, Alimta would maintain US-exclusivity until May 2022, preventing marketing of generic products for as long as the patent remains in force.