Keller Postman represents individuals throughout the United States who took Zantac or a generic brand of ranitidine to treat heartburn and were later diagnosed with cancer as a result of exposure to NDMA contained within the drug. We are fighting for clients in the federal MDL as well as in state courts across the country.
Our team at Keller Postman is fighting hard for victims who developed cancers associated with NDMA exposure. Although we wish we could reverse our clients’ tragic diagnoses, we are tirelessly fighting to hold the defendants accountable.
We represent clients in the federal Zantac multidistrict litigation, which consolidates lawsuits accusing Pfizer Inc., Sanofi SA, Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals Inc., and GlaxoSmithKline LLC—as well as generic makers, distributors, pharmacies, and others in the supply chain—of design defect, failure to warn, and other claims.
Keller Postman is also leading the charge on aggressive litigation in state court, largely for plaintiffs who suffer from non-designated cancers—and have no other avenue to pursue their claims. We also represent a number of clients with designated cancers in state court. Our firm has filed claims in California, Delaware, Illinois, and Pennsylvania.
In late 2019, public watchdogs at Valisure discovered that ranitidine (branded as “Zantac”) degrades into the cancer-causing compound NDMA. In 2020, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) asked all manufacturers to withdraw ranitidine products from the market after finding extremely high levels of the carcinogen nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA) in the ingredients of ranitidine medications—commonly known by the brand name Zantac.
The FDA confirmed that ranitidine contains unacceptable levels of NDMA and that the amount of NDMA increases when the medication is exposed to higher temperatures. Plus, more NDMA will form the longer that ranitidine is stored before it is consumed.
NDMA is also a chemical commonly used to cause cancer in lab rats and as an ingredient in rocket fuel. Despite the evidence of NDMA’s toxicity, drug manufacturers were aware of the risk but said nothing.
Before Zantac was pulled from the shelves, the medication was one of the most popular over-the-counter products used to treat heartburn and acid reflux, consumed regularly by hundreds of thousands of people.
Meet the attorneys leading the Zantac litigation.
We understand the harm you may have experienced and the seriousness of your claims, and we are committed to providing exceptional representation on your behalf.
We are home to one of the most exceptional team of attorneys in the United States. Our lawyers have trained at the top law schools, worked at the highest levels of government, and continually win awards for their outstanding achievements.
We have secured meaningful recoveries for more than 500,000 clients in the last three years alone. We act for clients who deserve to win, and we do everything we can to ensure that they do.
We make things easy for you. We’ll gather the evidence you need with the lowest burden on you. And with a large client base, we have efficiencies to reduce costs, and leverage to pursue the best outcomes we can for our clients.
Our team has the skills and resources to go head-to-head with the largest, most well-resourced corporations in the country. Plus, our lawyers have experience on both sides of the courtroom, allowing us the unique ability to anticipate our opponents’ moves.
Zantac (generic name ranitidine) is a medication primarily used to treat heartburn. It is known as a histamine-2 blocker, which reduces the amount of stomach acid. For years, doctors would recommend Zantac to treat heartburn or other conditions that may cause an overproduction of stomach acid.
Today, Zantac and all forms of ranitidine have been recalled after the FDA discovered the presence of NDMA (a probable human carcinogen) within the drug.
N-Nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA) is a “semivolatile organic chemical that forms in both industrial and natural processes,” according to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). It is considered a contaminant and has been used in production of liquid rocket fuel, antioxidants, additives for lubricants, and softeners for copolymers.
NDMA can cause serious medical concerns. For example, in a study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) , test animals developed lung cancer, liver cancer, liver damage/failure, and even internal bleeding after ingesting NDMA in their food, water, or through the air.
Valisure is an independent company that checks the chemical makeup of drugs before shipping them to consumers. In 2019, they discovered NDMA in batches of Zantac and informed the FDA. The FDA then launched its own investigation, confirming the findings of another pharmacy called Emery Pharma and requesting the removal of all ranitidine products from the U.S. market in April 2020.
The FDA found that “the impurity in some ranitidine products increases over time and when stored at higher than room temperatures and may result in consumer exposure to unacceptable levels of this impurity.”
The potential cancers that may be caused by Zantac and ranitidine use include:
Note that this is not an exhaustive list, but includes the most common forms of cancers that have a probable link to Zantac or ranitidine usage.
We unfortunately cannot predict with any certainty how long it will take for cases to resolve, as litigation is unpredictable. There is no way to know just yet. But we will keep this page updated and also ensure that our clients are notified with any key developments.
Unfortunately, the compensation that plaintiffs will receive is currently unknown and difficult to forecast. However, as soon as we can predict the compensation that victims will receive, we will share an update here.
Valisure Detects NDMA in Ranitidine: In a press release issued by Valisure on September 13, 2019, the company announced that it “discovered the link of Zantac and its generics to the carcinogen NDMA during its routine testing of every batch of every medication, and first notified the FDA of its initial findings in June of 2019.” They also filed a petition with the Food and Drug Administration, requesting that the agency recall all products containing ranitidine. Laboratory Tests for Ranitidine by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration: After the initial discovery of NDMA in Zantac and ranitidine products, the FDA continued to investigate the presence of the toxic substance. The acceptable daily intake limit for NDMA is ~.096 micrograms. They found that Zantac contains ~.36 micrograms of NDMA per tablet. FDA Requests Removal of All Ranitidine Products (Zantac) from the Market: In a press release issued by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on April 1, 2020, they announced that they requested that manufacturers “withdraw all prescription and over-the-counter (OTC) ranitidine drugs from the market immediately. This is the latest step in an ongoing investigation of a contaminant known as N-Nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA) in ranitidine medications (commonly known by the brand name Zantac).” About N-Nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA): Learn more about the makeup and effects of NDMA in this informational guide by the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Register.
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