Zantac Lawsuits
Zantac Lawsuits against Zantac manufacturers claim the heart burn drug contains cancer-causing chemicals
Lawsuits against Zantac claim the manufactures of Zantac knew contained cancer-causing chemicals and did not disclose to consumers.
DIAGNOSED WITH CANCER AFTER USING ZANTAC? If you OR A LOVED ONE used Zantac and have been diagnosed with cancer, our experienced personal injury attorney is here to fight for you with filing a Zantac lawsuit.
Zantac lawsuits seek personal injury claims over cancer-causing chemical
In early April, the US Food and Drug Administration recalled common heartburn drug Zantac from the market after studies showed it contains a carcinogenic chemical called NDMA.
A series of lawsuits against Sanofi and other manufacturers of Zantac now claim that the firms knew the drug contained carcinogens or impurities but failed to inform the public.
What is Zantac?
Zantac is a brand of ranitidine, a drug used by millions of patients to treat heartburn, acid reflux, stomach ulcers and Zollinger-Ellison syndrome, among other conditions. Sold in both prescription and over-the-counter versions, Zantac and other ranitidine drugs target the acid-producing mechanisms in the stomach.
Ranitidine was once the world’s best-selling pharmaceutical drug and manufacturers include Sanofi-Aventis, Sanofi, Chattem, Boehringer Ingelheim, Pfizer and GlaxoSmithKline.
What are the risks of Zantac for patients?
In September 2019, a small pharmacy called Valisure alerted the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that their labs had found a cancer-causing chemical, N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA), in ranitidine drugs. NDMA has been shown to cause cancer of the bladder, kidneys, pancreas, stomach, liver and lungs.
At first, the NDMA levels found were harmless—safe levels of the cancer-causing chemical are common in many foods and do not pose a risk if the body is able to process them.
But later tests showed that the body may process Zantac into dangerously high levels of NDMA. When Valisure put Zantac through a series of trials that simulated processes in the stomach, their labs detected NDMA levels 3,171 times higher than the daily limit recommended by the FDA. The FDA also found that the impurities and carcinogens in ranitidine increase to high-risk levels when stored for long periods of time, especially at above room temperatures.
As evidence mounted that Zantac contains dangerous levels of the carcinogenic, over 40 countries have banned Zantac and other brands of ranitidine.
Sanofi and 14 other ranitidine manufacturers have issued a recall of Zantac and CVS, Rite Aid, Walmart, Walgreens, and other drug stores have pulled ranitidine drugs off their shelves.
Janet Woodcock, M.D., director of the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research., said that, given the risk of personal injury to consumers, Zantac “should not be available to consumers and patients unless its quality can be assured.”
The FDA emphasized that because of the risks of the COVID-19 pandemic, consumers should not return their Zantac or other ranitidine products to a pharmacy or hospital but should dispose of them at home.
Companies linked to Zantac personal injury claims
– Ajanta Pharma
– Amneal Pharmaceuticals
– Aurobindo
– Boehringer Ingelheim
– Cardinal Health
– Chattem
– GlaxoSmithKline
– Novitium
– Pfizer
– Sanofi Pharmaceutical
– Silarx Pharma
– Strides Shasun Ltd
Patients who develop after taking Zantac may be entitled to damages
There is a growing body of evidence that Zantac manufacturers were aware of the risks associated with their products but failed to inform doctors, patients or the FDA. Lawyers have begun filing personal injury suits against Zantac drug companies, claiming that patients are entitled to compensation due to the firms’ negligence.
Long before the FDA recall of Zantac, a series of studies out of Syracuse and Stanford universities had already shown that the body may process elements of ranitidine into NDMA under certain conditions.
Zantac lawsuits contest that many patients who took ranitidine and later developed bladder, stomach and other cancers are entitled to damages. These personal injury suits are based on the claim that drug companies declined to inform consumers and doctors about the risks of their products and the danger that ranitidine may form NDMA inside the body.
Zantac lawsuits prepare to move ahead with personal injury claims
The first lawsuits against Zantac and ranitidine manufacturers were filed soon after Valisure’s initial findings in late 2019. Seeking compensation for injuries, pain and suffering, patients have already filed lawsuits claiming that they developed bladder, stomach, breast and other cancers as a result of taking Zantac.
Judges have begun consolidating Zantac lawsuits under Multidistrict Litigation, meaning a greater number of patients can seek compensation for personal injury. As of April, the number of personal injury Zantac lawsuits was in the hundreds and growing and many more patients are likely eligible to seek damages.
