GSK to Pay $2.2bn in Settlements Over Zantac Cancer Allegations
British pharmaceutical giant GSK has agreed to pay up to $2.2 billion to resolve thousands of lawsuits in the U.S. related to claims that a discontinued version of its popular heartburn medication, Zantac, caused cancer.
The company has reached settlement agreements with 10 law firms representing approximately 80,000 claimants, covering 93% of the cases filed. In addition to the settlement, GSK will pay $70 million to settle a whistleblower complaint that alleged the company hid the drug’s cancer risks from U.S. authorities.
Despite agreeing to the settlements, GSK has not admitted to any wrongdoing. In a statement to investors, the firm expressed relief, noting that the agreements eliminate “significant financial uncertainty, risk, and distraction associated with prolonged litigation.”
Zantac, which was first approved in the U.S. in 1983, became a blockbuster drug, generating over $1 billion in annual sales within five years. However, in 2020, U.S. regulators ordered the drug to be pulled from shelves due to concerns that ranitidine, a key ingredient, could transform into a cancer-causing substance when exposed to heat. This led to a wave of lawsuits from consumers claiming they developed cancer after using the medication.
The drug was also withdrawn in the UK in 2019 as a precautionary measure following concerns about possible cancer-causing impurities in the product. While Zantac was marketed by other pharmaceutical companies, including Pfizer, Sanofi, and Boehringer Ingelheim, only GSK, Pfizer, and Sanofi have agreed to settle claims. Boehringer Ingelheim has yet to announce any major settlement agreements.
A new version of Zantac, branded as Zantac 360 and free of ranitidine, remains available for purchase.