Ozel patent rights

No, but the patent itself is merely a technical writeup of an age old folk remedy that is really just boiling and condensing a common plant.  The only thing "unique" is the lypholization (freeze drying) process for preserving, storing and shipping the product, and many feel that the patent is not a strong one and might not hold up to a vigorous patent challenge.  That might explain why the big pharma guys never reached an agreement to pick up on the patent and run with it - though there are other suspicions as well.  At any rate, the home remedy version does not call for freeze drying.  Instead it substitutes using either vodka or apple cider vinegar as the preservative.

It has been reported that Ozel wished to make his process freely available to the public, but was convinced by his son and a group of investors to patent it and go for the money.  What they did was go broke. He should have marketed it as a supplement.

The newer oleander drug in FDA trials is a different ballgame, which uses liquid carbon dioxide as the extraction method.

BTW, ethanol extraction does not work - as is true in many botanicals, though not most.  An ethanloic extraction method results in losing vital polar compounds which precipitate out during the extraction process.  Over 500 compounds have been identified in the oleander plant thus far.  Though the cardiac glycoside oleandrin has been identified as the major active compound, it is not nearly as effective by itself and no one has yet figured out what synergistic combination makes oleander so effective.  It may take quite awhile to unravel, but new clues are emerging.

You might be interested in this:

Unraveling the Mysteries of the Cancer Fighting Oleander Plant

DQ