Allergan, FDA fight eyelash-mad copycats

It looks like a drug, it acts like a drug, but if comes in a cosmetics tube instead of an eyedropper, is it still a drug?

Call it the case of the thicker-lashed glaucoma patient. Lumigan, a glaucoma remedy sold by Allergan, has the unusual added benefit of promoting eyelash growth. Some eye docs are prescribing it not only to glaucoma patients, but off-label for cosmetics use. Meanwhile, an entrepreneurial cosmetics maker allegedly used similar ingredients in a mascara-like package. The FDA seized raided the company and seized boxes of the product on Friday, calling it a "mislabeled drug."

Meanwhile, Allergan itself is rumored to be testing Lumigan for cosmetic use. And it has sued seven cosmetics companies for patent infringement. Of course, the company has plenty of experience pushing medical remedies into the profitable cosmeceuticals realm. Remember Botox?

- check out the Wall Street Journal article

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