Technology Ventures: From Idea to Enterprise 4th Edition by Thomas Byers,Richard Dorf ,Andrew Nelson

Exercise 5

6 Mayo Clinic has filed an application for a broad method patent that gives it control over a new generation of treatments for chronic sinus inflammation, or sinusitis. The patent, in effect, blocks others from selling an antifungal agent to treat the condition without Mayo's approval. Mayo will soon try to license this patent to a pharmaceutical company. Are patents helpful in the process of developing a cure for diseases?