(NaturalHealth365)  Zantac is commonly used to alleviate indigestion, heartburn, and gastric ulcers and has long been considered a trusted medication.  However, recent evidence suggests that caution may be warranted when using this drug.  Thousands of lawsuits have been filed in state courts across the United States.

A recent report compiles the evidence uncovered in these cases, revealing previously hidden information about Zantac’s potential to cause cancer.  This new evidence paints a different picture of GlaxoSmithKline, the Big Pharma manufacturer of Zantac, and raises concerns about the safety of this widely used medication.

Thousands of lawsuits allege GlaxoSmithKline knew about Zantac’s cancer-causing potential

Within just five years of its introduction, Zantac rapidly gained popularity as a preferred treatment option for heartburn, gastric reflux, and other related issues.  Its widespread use helped to make it the world’s best-selling medicine, with annual sales exceeding $1 billion.  This success led to GlaxoSmithKline selling Zantac to Boehringer Ingelheim and eventually to Sanofi.

However, despite its success, it was not long before Zantac’s safety came into question.  Over time, evidence emerged suggesting that Zantac could cause cancer, particularly in the bladder, stomach, and liver.  As a result, thousands of lawsuits have since been filed in state courts across the United States, alleging that the manufacturers of Zantac knew or should have known about the drug’s cancer-causing potential but failed to warn the public adequately.

Zantac’s downfall: Cost of prioritizing profits over safety in the pharmaceutical industry

In 2019, Zantac’s success was at an all-time high, with profits matching its widespread popularity.  However, this golden image was about to be tarnished.  That same year, an online pharmacy detected high N-Nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA) levels in Sanofi and generic versions of the drug.  NDMA is a potent carcinogen, and its presence in Zantac marked the beginning of the drug’s downward spiral.

Following the discovery of NDMA, recalls of the drug were initiated, and in 2020, the FDA formally withdrew it from the market.  The official reasons for this decision were based on research showing that the longer the drug is stored, the higher the levels of NDMA, making it potentially unsafe for use.  Even under normal storage conditions, the risk was deemed too high.

In addition to the NDMA risk, a Bloomberg Businessweek report uncovered another known danger associated with Zantac: under certain stomach conditions, ranitidine, the active ingredient in Zantac, could form a potentially dangerous compound with the potential to cause cancer.

The revelation of these risks highlights the importance of rigorous safety testing and monitoring in the pharmaceutical industry.

Despite evidence to the contrary, GlaxoSmithKline maintains there is no proof Zantac causes cancer

The pharmaceutical companies that were involved with the drug are now facing lawsuits in the tens of thousands.  State courts throughout the United States hear these lawsuits, and it doesn’t look so good for the Big Pharma giant.  The general consensus with the plaintiffs in these cases asserts that if the company truly did not know of these dangers (and it is highly unlikely that they did not), then they should have known.  And if these court cases are successful … they will also reveal that the company should have warned consumers about the cancer risk, but they did not!

They should have to pay for that irresponsibility and quite possibly the most unethical business practices you can imagine.

And in the midst of the barrage of accusations, highlighting its irresponsibility and disregard for human health, GlaxoSmithKline still maintains that there is no reliable or consistent evidence that Zantac causes cancer.

Yet the medications that the FDA pulled from the market after the massive recall contained extremely high NDMA levels, far higher than the levels shown to cause cancer.

The lawsuits maintain that GlaxoSmithKline and the regulatory bodies have been aware that the medications contained NDMA for a very long time.  Of course, GlaxoSmithKline continues to deny all of this.

But we all know that closing your eyes doesn’t make the monsters go away.  We will continue to pray that the truth comes out about this issue.

Sources for this article include:

ChildrensHealthDefense.org
Bloomberg.com