Canadian court dismisses GSK Zantac litigation

A proposed class action against GSK has been dismissed by a court in Canada, the UK drugs giant confirmed on Friday.

The action had been brought on behalf of Canadian users of ranitidine, a heartburn treatment marketed under the Zantac brand.

First approved in 1983, Zantac was a blockbuster drug for GSK. But in 2019 concerns were raised that its active ingredient degraded over time to form a chemical called NDMA, which in larger doses can cause cancer.

The US Food and Drug Administration withdrew approval in 2020, prompting a number of lawsuits in the US and Canada.

Welcoming the decision by the British Columbia Supreme Court, GSK said on Friday that the court had acknowledged “uncontroverted evidence” that neither ranitidine nor NDMA were “reliably associated with increased cancer risk”, meaning the plaintiff had failed to raise a bona fide triable issue.

GSK has repeatedly denied ranitidine causes cancer. It said that after 13 peer-reviewed epidemiological studies carried out since 2019, the scientific consensus was that there was "no consistent or reliable evidence" that the drug increased cancer risk.

The blue chip added: “GSK will continue to vigorously defend proposed class actions by ranitidine users that have been filed in Ontario and Quebec as well as individual actions filed by ranitidine users in Canada.”