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The David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA has responded on behalf of the University of California to UACT’s recent letters on the Xtandi (INN:enzalutamide) patent in India. In a letter sent by post dated September 7, 2017, received on September 19, 2017, (copy  here)Dr. John C. Mazziotta, the Vice Chancellor for UCLA Health Sciences and the CEO of the UCLA Health System wrote to UACT, rejecting the request by UACT and others that the University abandon its appeal of a rejection of enzalutamide patent in India. Mazziotta did say “UC has brought to Medivation’s attention the concerns UACT has raised, ” but that wasRead More →

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Today, September 13, 2017, Emily Leonard, a US Navy veteran and UC San Diego alumna, spoke on behalf of UACT and Universities Allied for Essential Medicines before the University of California Board of Regents.  Ms. Leonard delivered a copy of the letter sent to the Regents on May 24, 2017 asking the University of California to drop its pursuit of a patent on the prostate cancer drug enzalutamide (sold by Astellas as Xtandi) in India. The Board of Regents has yet to reply to the May 24, 2017 letter, or a follow-up letter sent on August 9, 2017 to Regents member Sherry Lansing. You canRead More →

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Today, UACT submitted letters to the CEOs of three major pharmaceutical companies currently developing chimeric antigen receptor T-cell (CAR T) technologies.  UACT asked the leaders of Novartis, Gilead Sciences, and Juno Therapeutics to address questions regarding research and development (R&D) costs, federal-funding received, potential public health impact, and ensuring equitable and affordable access to CAR T treatments in the US and around the world. The first CAR T treatment was approved by the FDA yesterday, a treatment for leukemia in children and young adults produced by Novartis, and was quickly announced to carry a $475,000 price tag. As this new area of cancer-treating technologies emerges,Read More →

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On August 31, 2017, UACT sent a letter to Francis Collins, the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), regarding the emerging chimeric antigen receptor T-cell (CAR T) technologies that are currently being developed across a number of pharmaceutical companies and institutions.  On August 30, 2017, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) made the first approval of a CAR T treatment, a leukemia treatment by Novartis for children and young adults. Novartis announced it would charge $475,000 for the treatment. In the UACT letter to Dr. Collins, we ask the NIH to communicate more information to public regarding the NIH role in developing, patentingRead More →

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The Union for Affordable Cancer Treatment is asking Sherry Lansing, the former Paramount CEO and current member of the Board of Regents of the University of California, to stop the Regents’ efforts to obtain a patent on the prostate cancer drug enzalutamide (brand name Xtandi) in India. On May 24th, 2017, UACT was joined by 56 civil society organizations and academic experts in sending a letter to Janet Napolitano, President of the University of California system, and the Board of Regents of the University of California, requesting that they withdraw their efforts to obtain a patent on enzalutamide in India. Neither Napolitano’s office nor theRead More →