OSI Pharmaceuticals, Inc announced that the US Patent & Trademark Office has issued a Notice of Allowance in OSI's reissue application for US Patent No.5,747,498 (the '498) composition of matter patent for Tarceva (erlotinib). The reissued patent will replace the original '498 patent and have the same November 2018 expiration date.

"This decision by the PTO is encouraging as OSI, along with the biopharmaceutical industry, recognizes that patent rights are an important asset in protecting the extensive R&D investment necessary to bring new drugs and therapeutics to patients. This action by the PTO is significant as we view this reissue grant as a positive step in managing generic challenges to the Tarceva patent estate," stated Colin Goddard, chief executive officer of OSI Pharmaceuticals. "With a potential approval on the horizon based on the SATURN data in the first-line maintenance setting for non-small cell lung cancer; additional ongoing phase-III studies in NSCLC for first-line EGFR mutation patients and in the stage I-IIIa adjuvant setting; and, further phase-III studies in ovarian cancer and hepatocellular carcinoma, we believe Tarceva will remain a growing, anchoring asset for the Company over the next decade."

Tarceva is a once-a-day pill that targets the EGFR pathway. Tarceva is designed to inhibit the tyrosine kinase activity of the EGFR signaling pathway inside the cell, one of the critical growth factors in NSCLC and pancreatic cancers.

OSI Pharmaceuticals is committed to shaping medicine and changing lives by discovering, developing and commercializing high-quality, novel and differentiated targeted medicines designed to extend life and improve the quality of life for patients with cancer and diabetes/obesity.