Drug Therapy

• Drug therapy refers to treatment of patients using prescription drugs. It may be temporary care to target a short-term illness or long-term management of a chronic disease. Either way, it is a part of patient care.
  
  

Why Do Patent Cases Relate to Drugs?

• Before a patient ever receives a prescription from a pharmacy, drug companies must first patent their formula for a particular medication. Often, the description of the drug includes a phrase about what kind of therapy a drug offers -- whether for cancer treatment, depression treatment, or whatever disease is being targeted.
  
  

Is There Ongoing Research on Existing Drugs?

• Sometimes, new research exposes new uses for a prescription drug. In this case, since an existing drug is already patented, it cannot be "repatented," but can be patented for a new use, thus protecting the new intellectual property relating to the emerging discovery.