While this settlement apparently resolves 93 percent of the lawsuits brought against GSK, the firm still claims there is supposedly no reliable evidence linking Zantac to cancer. Tellingly, however, GSK has agreed to pay $70 million to settle a whistleblower case alleging it concealed cancer risks relating to the drug.
Zantac was initially approved for use in the United States in 1983 and quickly became the world’s best-selling drug, with sales exceeding $1 billion annually. However, American regulators removed it from the market in 2020 due to concerns that the drug’s active ingredient, ranitidine, could transform into a cancer-causing substance when exposed to heat. This led to a wave of lawsuits against pharmaceutical companies involved in producing and selling the drug. These included not just GSK but also Pfizer, Sanofi, and Boehringer Ingelheim.
While Pfizer and Sanofi have agreed to settle claims, Boehringer Ingelheim has not yet reached any major settlements. Meantime, a drug formulation known as Zantac 360, which does not contain ranitidine, continues to remain available on the market.
To read how some popular heartburn drugs have been shown to depress iron levels in the body, see this news story on our website.
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October 18, 2024GlaxoSmithKline to Pay $2.2 Billion Over Zantac Cancer Claims
News
UK pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) says it will pay as much as $2.2 billion to settle thousands of cases in US courts over claims that a discontinued version of its heartburn drug Zantac caused cancer.
[Source: bbc.co.uk]
[Image source: Adobe Stock]
Comment
While this settlement apparently resolves 93 percent of the lawsuits brought against GSK, the firm still claims there is supposedly no reliable evidence linking Zantac to cancer. Tellingly, however, GSK has agreed to pay $70 million to settle a whistleblower case alleging it concealed cancer risks relating to the drug.
Zantac was initially approved for use in the United States in 1983 and quickly became the world’s best-selling drug, with sales exceeding $1 billion annually. However, American regulators removed it from the market in 2020 due to concerns that the drug’s active ingredient, ranitidine, could transform into a cancer-causing substance when exposed to heat. This led to a wave of lawsuits against pharmaceutical companies involved in producing and selling the drug. These included not just GSK but also Pfizer, Sanofi, and Boehringer Ingelheim.
While Pfizer and Sanofi have agreed to settle claims, Boehringer Ingelheim has not yet reached any major settlements. Meantime, a drug formulation known as Zantac 360, which does not contain ranitidine, continues to remain available on the market.
To read how some popular heartburn drugs have been shown to depress iron levels in the body, see this news story on our website.
Dr. Rath Health Foundation
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