Hologic Wins Patent Battle Against Siemens Healthineers, Orders Mammography System Recall

Hologic announced a victory in the Unified Patent Court (UPC) in Germany, which ruled that Siemens Healthineers infringed on a Hologic mammography technology patient in Siemens’ latest mammography system.

The court imposed a sweeping injunction. Siemens was immediately prohibited from making, offering, placing on the market, using, or importing its Mammomat B.brilliant systems across Germany, France, and the Netherlands. Siemens will also receive monetary damages and penalties for non-compliance.

The court also required Siemens to do a mandatory recall and destruction of all affected systems in those countries.

Specifically on June 10, the UPC determined that Siemens infringed upon European Patent EP 2 352 431, Hologic’s Focusing Technology on the Envision platform, the first FDA-approved mammography innovation of its kind.

Hologic will also receive retroactive and future damages and costs to be determined by the court. Siemens must also refund customers of the infringing systems for the purchase price paid and reimburse them for logistics and related costs as part of the recall.

“This ruling is a decisive validation of the strength and originality of Hologic’s innovation—and, more importantly, of the standards we believe women deserve in breast cancer screening,” said Essex Mitchell, COO at Hologic. “Our technologies are designed to help detect cancer earlier, improve diagnostic confidence and ultimately save lives. When other companies infringe on our patented inventions, it risks undermining the development of new and innovative products that give physicians the ability to deliver the care patients depend on. Hologic will continue to work to ensure clinicians have access to the most advanced, proven technologies and that women worldwide have access to the latest screening innovations.”