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Case Study

Herceptin & Roche in India: The battle for life-saving treatment (A)

By Michael Yaziji and Lisa Simone Duke

9 pages

December 2014

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Reference: IMD-7-1634

This case series looks at the actions taken by NGOs, local campaigners and the Indian government, against Roche over its patent for a breast cancer drug “Trastuzumab”, otherwise known as “Herceptin”, Herceptin was an expensive but highly effective treatment for some types of breast cancer and campaigners were vocal in arguing that in emerging markets, such as India, it was beyond the means of the majority of the population. Case A covers the campaign and actions until December 2012. Although Roche reduced the price of Herceptin and entered into an agreement with a local company to produce a generic version at a lower price, the campaign for greater access continued.

Learning Objective

This case series looks to understand how NGOs and local campaigners can affect a company’s ability to market its products or operate in emerging markets.

Keywords

Pharmaceuticals, Global Business, Emerging Market, Intellectual Property Rights, Patent Protection, Non-Governmental Organization, Non-Governmental Organization Campaign, Free Trade Agreement, Oncology, Generic Drug

Settings

Asia, India
Roche, Healthcare, Pharmaceuticals
2012

Type

Published Sources

Available Languages

English

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