Drug manufacturer Bayer stated on May 05 that it had challenged an Indian patents office order that permitted domestic contender Natco Pharma to market a low-priced generic edition of the German company's liver and kidney cancer medication Nexavar in the Indian market.

In the month of March, the patents office stripped Bayer of its exclusive rights to market Nexavar, stating that the majority of Indians could not meet the expense of it.

It told Natco Pharma to market the generic medicine considerably more inexpensively and pay Bayer a 6% royalty on sales.

Bayer stated that it had appealed against the decision.

A company's spokesperson stated, "We will rigorously continue to defend our intellectual property rights, which are a prerequisite for bringing innovative medicines to patients."

The country's verdict on Nexavar was witnessed as an example, which could expand to other cures, comprising current HIV/AIDS medications, in a major blow to international pharmaceutical companies.

Apart from others, Bayer is filing a suit against another Indian drug manufacturer, Cipla, for patent breach over Nexavar.

Cipla has been marketing generic Nexavar in the Indian market, and it has cut down the cost of the medication by around 75% to Rs 6,840 per month.