Cigna sues Bristol Myers for alleged monopoly over blockbuster cancer drug

CignasuedBristolMyers Squibbon Tuesday, accusing the drugmaker of violating U.S. antitrust law by keeping generic versions of its blockbusterblood cancerdrug Pomalyst off the market so itcouldretain a monopoly.

In a complaint filed in Manhattan federal court, Cigna saidBristolMyers’ Celgene unit filed sham lawsuits to protect its patents for Pomalyst,whose chemical name is pomalidomide, andpaidoff several generic drugmakersto endlegal challenges.

The insurer also said Celgenedid nottellthe U.S. Patent and Trademark Office that a Boston doctor had obtained a patent for pomalidomide to treat multiple myeloma,and defrauded that office by claiming “unexpected” positive results in testing.

By having “willfully maintained monopoly power” over brand name and generic Pomalyst,BristolMyers caused purchasers such as Cigna to overpay by “many hundreds of millions, if not billions, of dollars,” the complaint said.

BristolMyers, based in Princeton, New Jersey, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Cigna, based in Bloomfield, Connecticut, is seeking unspecified triple damages.

It sued nearly three months after a Manhattan federal judgedismisseda proposed class action led by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Louisiana raising similar claims.

In that case, U.S. District Judge Edgardo Ramos said the plaintiffs failed to show Celgene committed fraud in procuring patents for Pomalyst, or that Celgene filed baseless lawsuits against generic drugmakers that led to fraudulent settlements.

BristolMyers’U.S. sales of the drug, which is also sold under the name Imnovid, totaled $2.7 billion last year and $537 million in the first three months of 2025.

Multiple myeloma is ablood cancerthat affects plasma cells in bone marrow.

There is no known cure, and thefive-year survival ratewas 62.4% between 2015 and 2021, according to the National Cancer Institute.