Empirical Study On Patenting And Compulsory Licensing Of Cancer Drugs In The Indian Legal System

Abstract

The current Indian perspective into drug patenting requires a crucial to understand the implications placed on access to certain drugs by patenting and licensing practices. This paper is an attempt to analyze how Indian law approaches patenting and licensing of drugs, more particularly cancer therapies. This research aims to critically analyze the legal framework related to drug patenting and licensing in India, focusing on key provisions of the Patents Act and relevant amendments. The study questions of this research venture were sought with a view of appreciating how these judgments impact on public health, the cost of drugs and, consequently, the availability of cancer drugs. The research is, therefore, going to employ doctrinal and non-doctrinal study approaches, targeting different respondents such as legal professionals, medical practitioners, other professionals, cancer patients and drug departments. The study will employ both questionnaires and interviews in data collection method since the questions are structured in both methods. All quantitative data will be analysed with the help of such methods. The study also aimed at coming up with finding on the useful of compulsory licensing, and other legal regimes for improving access to essential medicines. Legal experts had significantly higher confidence in compulsory licensing with regards to its ability to disrupt monopolies, reduce the prices of drugs among other impact. However, healthcare professionals and patients indicated that while the concept of compulsory licensing was theoretically sound, its success in practice had been inconsistent. The research highlights the need for better alignment between legal frameworks and public health priorities. Strong legal frameworks, rigorous monitoring and enforcement systems, and broader stakeholder engagement in policy debates and legislative changes, including patients and healthcare professionals, are needed to achieve this balance. Mixed stakeholder perspectives highlight the complexity of the problem, recommending that legislative reforms should be accompanied with institutional adjustments to enhance implementation and guarantee their benefits reach the intended recipients.