Should Companies Issue Gene Patents for Breast Cancer Patients?

This week, breast cancer patients filed a lawsuit against Myriad Genetics, the company who we licensed to do tests for possible breast cancer gene mutations. What’s inside of it was an appeal to the judge whether they will allow companies to patent cancer genes where in fact these things happen naturally inside the human body. Recently, Myriad was granted the rights to perform exclusive diagnostic tests on the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes. Included in this right was preventing any research body to look and examine the genes without asking the permission of Myriad. American Civil Liberties Union condemns this act by filling this lawsuit because according to them, these acts “hamper clinical diagnosis” and might delay development in the research on genetic mutations.