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Cancer patient Yvonne D'Arcy says she's ready for a David and Goliath battle challenging a patent over a human gene linked to breast and ovarian cancers.

Landmark legal action was launched in the Federal Court in Sydney on Tuesday against the owners of the patent over the gene mutation BRCA1, which is associated with an increased risk of the cancers.

The co-owners include Myriad Genetics and Melbourne-based Genetic Technologies Ltd, the company that holds the exclusive licence to conduct the tests in Australia.

Rebecca Gilsenan, from Maurice Blackburn Lawyers, said an exclusive right to the patent prevents competition in the cost and quality of the tests.

"The owner of the patent has the right to control all forms of expression of the gene, so they have the right to isolate it, to look at it, to research it and to test for it," Ms Gilsenan told reporters.

"At the moment, this case will challenge the fundamental premise about access to the isolated gene itself."

She said it would be the first time an Australian court would rule on the validity...