Cipla, Roche turn partners for the first time to sell cancer drugs

Cipla and Roche settled patent dispute last year. Cipla withdrew its petition in Supreme Court against in the matter

Cipla and Roche which fought a bitter legal battle over patent infringement of the latter's lung cancer drug Tarceva have turned partners for the first time. 

On Tuesday, the Swiss pharma giant Roche announced that it had tied up with Cipla to distribute its rheumatoid arthritis drug Actemra and anti cancer drug Avastin. Currently, Roche sells both the products in India and "through this partnership the companies will leverage their expertise to increase access to these innovative medicines for patients in India."

The tie up allows Roche to grow its market share as local local drug makers have launched copies of its