Ono Files Japan Patent Action As Keytruda Nears Market

Hot on the heels of Keytruda's US approval for first-line use in lung cancer, and just ahead of the drug’s first local launch, rival PD-1 player Ono has launched a patent infringement suit in Japan against Merck, adding to similar actions brought elsewhere by its global Opdivo partner BMS.

The legal battles between major players in the immuno-oncology space are heating up following the filing of a legal injunction in Japan by Ono Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. against Merck & Co. Inc.'s subsidiary MSD KK, claiming infringement of patents in the country relating to an anti-PD-1 antibody.

The action, filed by the mid-size Japanese company in the Tokyo District Court on Oct. 24, follows the Sept. 28...

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