About
Dr Kathy Liddell and Dr John Liddicoat
"The Changing IP Landscape for Precision Medicine"
Precision Medicine: Legal and Ethical Challenges
University of Hong Kong
8 April 2016
Abstract:
A difficult, but crucial, challenge for the future of precision medicine is to improve the translation of basic genomic science into affordable and widely adopted new treatments. This is essential if genomics is to become, as is widely hoped, an everyday reality in healthcare. One issue is how to raise or recoup funding to meet the significant costs associated with understanding how genetic correlations work in particular individuals in a clinically useful way. This is particularly complex in light of the changing landscape of intellectual property incentives for precision medicine. This presentation focuses on two recent IP developments: (1) the dramatic decrease in the economic strength of DNA-related patents following several landmark rulings by the US Supreme Court (for example, Alice Corp, Myriad and Prometheus); and (2) increasing public attention on the IP and access policies for major biobanks, and associated calls for ‘open innovation’. We will also outline some of the new research questions raised by this changing landscape. For example, in what ways have the patent strategies and business models of precision medicine innovators changed? Are other IP rights taking on greater significance?