Patients can get impatient &mdash in this case when it involves data relating to a treatment they volunteered for. Three patients who participated in a clinical trial examining the efficacy of Teva Pharmaceuticals’ Copaxone, a multiple sclerosis drug, in treating amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS, or more commonly, Lou Gehrig’s disease) are suing the Israeli drug giant, saying they were not given enough information about the treatment.

They’re demanding that Teva release the results of the trial, but the company has refused, saying that information falls under the umbrella of trade secrets. Teva has offered a compromise, under the terms of which the data would be released, but kept secret outside of the trial proceedings.

Copaxone is scheduled to go off-patent soon, but in an interview with Nature Medicine in March, Teva CEO Shlomo Yanai said he did not expect to see generic competition until 2014. It would be an interesting reversal for the company, which is the largest manufacturer of generic medicines worldwide.