GSK Prevails in Second Zantac Cancer Case to Go to Trial

GSK Plc convinced an Illinois jury that the former heartburn drug Zantac was not liable for a woman’s colorectal cancer in a second trial win for the British drugmaker.

It comes just over two months after jurors in Chicago also found that GSK and Boehringer Ingelheim GmbH weren’t liable for another woman’s illness.

The company’s share price rose slightly in early London trading. GSK stock is up nearly 7% since the start of the year.

GSK is one of several drugmakers facing lawsuits from people who argue the companies knew ranitidine — Zantac’s active ingredient — turned into the potential carcinogen NDMA under certain conditions. In 2020, the US Food and Drug Administration asked companies to remove all ranitidine-based drugs from the US market.

The verdict in Illinois is “consistent with the scientific consensus that there is no consistent or reliable evidence that ranitidine increases the risk of any cancer,” GSK said in a statement Tuesday.

GSK is still facing thousands of cases in the US. A judge earlier this year said that GSK, Pfizer Inc. and others must face trials in a Delaware state court.

GSK has already settled several cases, while not admitting liability.

The Zantac litigation has overshadowed progress GSK has made elsewhere, including with its vaccine for a common respiratory virus that outpaced sales of competitor Pfizer’s shot in the US.

Under Chief Executive Officer Emma Walmsley, GSK has worked to prioritize products in areas where it has existing strengths such a vaccines. Walmsley also demerged GSK’s consumer health business, enabling the company to focus on innovative new medicines.