Two Zantac Lawsuits, Two types of Cancer

Tampa, FLTwo Zantac lawsuits recently filed allege the popular heartburn and acid reflux medication causes Zantac bladder cancer and Zantac colon cancer. Both plaintiffs claim they were exposed to dangerous amounts of  N--Nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA), a known cancer-causing chemical found in the medication.

Zantac Complaints

Christopher Montgomery filed his complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida on May 20, saying he took Zantac for 11 years before being diagnosed with colon cancer in July 2016. Montgomery accuses defendants Sanofi, Sanofi-Aventis, US, Chattem, Boehringer Ingelheim, GlaxoSmithKline and Pfizer of intentionally hiding the fact that users may be exposed to dangerous levels of NDMA and the drug manufacturers knew it was carcinogenic.

According to the lawsuit, “Put simply, Zantac is a cancerous poison…When ingested, every tablet (and every dose), produces NDMA.”  It goes on: “Recent revelations by independent researchers have uncovered what will likely go down as one of the gravest public-health frauds in modern times.”

Another Florida man filed a complaint in the U.S. District Court Middle District of Florida. Carl Williams claims he developed bladder cancer after taking Zantac for nearly 30 years but didn’t know the drug was linked to cancer until September 2019, when the FDA first issued a warning that ranitidine drugs, including Zantac, may contain dangerous amounts of NDMA.

Williams is suing the same defendants as above, arguing the four drug makers knew the product was dangerous yet kept it on the market. “Had any Defendant warned Plaintiff that Ranitidine under brand name Zantac could lead to exposure to NDMA or, in turn, cancer, Plaintiff would not have taken Zantac,” according to the lawsuit.

Further, Williams claims that the link between Zantac and unsafe levels of NDMA goes as far back as 1981, two years before the FDA approved the drug, and this was known or should have been known by manufacturers.

Many more Zantac lawsuits nationwide are similar, noting the drug makers knew, or had reason to know that Zantac is a cancerous poison, yet withheld warnings and information from consumers and the medical community, continuing to market the drug as a safe and effective treatment for heartburn and acid reflux.

The FDA says it is “OK” to be exposed to NDMA at 96 nanograms daily but independent testing has found that some 150 mg Zantac pills contained more than 3 million nanograms, a discovery that propelled the FDA to recall Zantac on April 1.

What is NDMA?

Health and environmental experts and lawsuits state that NDMA is a by-product or waste product of various industrial processes, including the manufacture of rocket fuel. Montgomery’s complaint adds that, “ NDMA’s lone medical use is to cause cancer in animals for laboratory experimentation.”

Montgomery’s lawsuit states that “ Cigarette smoking in most public places in the United States has been banned, in part, because it produces NDMA, and animal studies have shown that “exposure to NDMA has caused tumors primarily of the liver, respiratory tract, kidney and blood vessels.” Once present in the human body, NDMA further metabolizes into other known carcinogens, including formaldehyde.

Zantac Sales

Zantac—the brand-name version of the generic drug ranitidine, was one of the first global blockbuster drugs, with annual sales of $1 billion by 1987. After its 1983 introduction, it stayed  one of the all-time, best-selling prescription drugs for over a decade. And today, even after the introduction of generic alternatives, Zantac ranks among the top 100 best-selling prescription drugs in the U.S., with more than 15 million prescriptions written in 2016—in just that year--for Zantac.