Sanofi prevails in patent dispute

The US Federal Circuit on Wednesday ruled that a district judge lacked authority to invalidate claims of a patent on French pharma major Sanofi's (Euronext: SAN) prostate cancer drug Jevtana (cabazitaxel) that the company had disclaimed, and that a host of generics makers failed to prove a second patent on the drug is invalid, Law360 reported.

The patent that has been upheld by the court will expire in 2021.

The decision effectively turns down attempts by several competitors - including Fresenius, Mylan (Nasdaq: MYL) and Apotex - to produce a generic version of Jevtana, which generated 422 million euros ($470 million) in global sales for the company during 2018.