British drugs firm GSK has been accused of burying a report said to prove a link between its medication Zantac and cancer, a new lawsuit has claimed.
A pension fund has filed a class action against the group in the US, alleging GSK and three executives including its boss, Emma Walmsley, misled investors by claiming it had no knowledge of a connection between its heartburn medication Zantac and cancer.
Zantac went on sale in the UK in 1981, and by 1988 it was the world’s fastest-selling drug.
But in 2019, GSK withdrew it in the UK and US over fears that the ingredient ranitidine created a carcinogenic chemical in the body when combined with nitrates, which are found in many foods.
In the US, tens of thousands of people sought compensation. At the time, GSK said the scientific consensus was there was ‘no consistent or reliable evidence that ranitidine increases the risk of… cancer’.
In October, GSK said it had spent $2.2billion settling 93 per cent of the cases without admitting liability.
But in a lawsuit filed with the US district court in Pennsylvania, the Roofers Local No149 Pension Fund alleged GSK was ‘fully aware’ of a link between Zantac and cancer for ‘nearly 40 years’ before it was pulled.
Emma Walmsley, chief executive officer of GSK Plc, pictured in July 2024
Zantac went on sale in the UK in 1981, and by 1988 it was the world’s fastest-selling drug
GSK is accused of burying a report said to prove a link between its medication Zantac and cancer
GSK said: ‘The scientific consensus is that there is no consistent or reliable evidence that ranitidine increases the risk of any cancer’
Court documents claim that in 1982, Richard Tanner, a scientist at Glaxo, a predecessor firm of GSK, found that when ranitidine interacted with nitrites it produced around 232,000 nanograms of NDMA, a carcinogenic chemical.
The US drugs regulator later stated that only up to 96 nanograms was acceptable in a drug.
The claim alleges Glaxo and GSK buried the report, leaving investors with an ‘economic loss’ when the legal cases hit GSK’s share price.
GSK said: ‘We’re reviewing this legal proceeding.
‘Since 2019, following the 16 epidemiological studies looking at human data regarding the use of ranitidine, the scientific consensus is that there is no consistent or reliable evidence that ranitidine increases the risk of any cancer.
‘Following the first Zantac personal injury claim being filed in 2019, we have disclosed the litigation related to Zantac as a potential risk and kept shareholders regularly updated.’