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82 J. Pat. & Trademark Off. Soc'y 381 (2000)
Patentability of Methods of Medical Treatment: A Comparative Study

handle is hein.journals/jpatos82 and id is 395 raw text is: Patentability of Methods of Medical Treatment: A Comparative Study Todd Martin* I. INTRODUCTION T he patentability of methods of medical treatment is a developing issue worldwide. The issue eludes an easy solution due in part to its dual roots in patent law and medical law. The issue is further compli- cated by numerous ethical considerations surrounding the patenting of methods of medical treatment. An analysis of the pertinent issues involved brings together two very different areas of law: patent law and medical law.' Patent law gen- erally concerns property, its protection and the revelation of new tech- nology. A basic tenet of patent law is ownership and the ability to exclude as a reward for revealing an inventor's new technology.2 A fun- damental trait of patent law is its reliance on economic motivation and reward as a means to encourage innovation, development and dissemina- tion of technology. It is this trait which distinguishes patent law from medical law the most. Medical law, by contrast, has its origins in the Hippocratic Oath. A primary goal of medicine is not the innovation and development of tech- nology, but the preservation of human life. In pursuit of this goal, physi- cians have routinely shared new advances in the art of medicine.3 Furthermore, medical law is not confined to a statute, but is governed largely by ethics.4 It is the object of this article to categorize and define generally the various methods of medical treatment, and to provide a glimpse into the *Chantilly, VA I See generally, Doris Thums, Patent Protection for Medical Treatment-A Distinction Between Patent and Medical Law, 27 IIC 423, 426 (1996). 2 For more on the background of patents generally, see 1 Donald S. Chisum, Patents § 1.01 (1995). 3 Joel J. Garris, The Case for Patenting Medical Procedures, 22 Am. J. L. and Med. 85, 93 (1996). 4 See generally, Thums, supra note 1, at 426.

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