Guardant Health Files Lanham Act Lawsuit Against Foundation Medicine Alleging False Advertising

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Jun 22, 2017, 11:00 ET

REDWOOD CITY, Calif., June 22, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Guardant Health, the leader in comprehensive liquid biopsies, filed a lawsuit against Foundation Medicine, Inc. (FMI), for false advertising and unfair competition. Guardant Health initiated the litigation today under the Lanham Act and related California statutes in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.

The complaint alleges that FMI's advertising harms Guardant Health and patients by misleading oncologists about the accuracy and sensitivity of the Guardant360® assay, Guardant Health's industry-leading comprehensive liquid biopsy, as well as FMI's own assays.

"We welcome competition because accelerating advances in oncology will benefit millions of patients," said Helmy Eltoukhy, PhD, co-founder and CEO of Guardant Health. "But it is vital that clinicians receive accurate and truthful information, because this affects patient safety. We believe that companies in the cancer diagnostics business – companies that must have patient care as their central mission – should not misrepresent science for commercial gain. When they do, we believe that appropriate corrective action must be taken."

The complaint contends that although FMI routinely promotes its own liquid biopsy as the "best in class" with "unparalleled" sensitivity, multiple studies – including some presented by FMI at a recent scientific conference – contradict these claims.

Guardant Health has asked the court to enjoin FMI from continuing to make or disseminate false or misleading statements about the performance of its own assays as well as Guardant360, and to require FMI to retract, remove, and correct these false and misleading advertising claims.

To view a copy of the complaint, click here.

About Guardant Health
Guardant Health is focused on conquering cancer by using its breakthrough blood-based assays, vast data sets, and advanced analytics. Using both molecular and digital tools, Guardant Health is addressing challenges across the cancer care continuum. The company has raised more than $500 million from leading investors. Its first product, the Guardant360 assay, came to market in 2014, and is now the most widely ordered comprehensive liquid biopsy commercially available. In 2016, it announced Project LUNAR, an effort to apply Guardant Health's technology platform to early detection, recurrence monitoring, and assessing minimal residual disease. Guardant Health and Guardant360 are registered trademarks of Guardant Health, Inc.

SOURCE Guardant Health