GSK: Cancer claims plague pharma giant as it settles another Zantac case
GSK, formerly known as GlaxoSmithKline, has reached another confidential settlement in a Californian lawsuit that had alleged its heartburn drug, Zantac, caused cancer.
The case, which was set to begin trial on 2 April 2024 with claimants listed as Boyd/ Steenvoord, will now be dismissed.
The company said on Thursday that in reaching the settlement it “doesn’t accept any liability” and will to “vigorously defend itself based on the facts and the science in all other Zantac cases”.
It added it had settled the case out of a “desire to avoid the distraction related to protracted litigation”.
The settlement is the latest in a line of similar agreements made by the pharmaceutical giant over the discontinued heartburn tablet, the first of which was made in June of last year.
The drug, which was one of the best-selling in medicines in history and one of the first to hit $1bn in annual sales, was pulled from shelves in the UK in 2019. The US Food and Drug Administration in 2020 pulled the branded and generic versions of the drug off the market, precipitating the slew of lawsuits.
Analysts predict the settlement cost for GSK to be in the region of $5bn.