The stakes are high in Cook County as Angela Valadez, 89, brings pharmaceutical giants GSK and Boehringer Ingelheim to court over cancer claims related to the heartburn drug Zantac. According to the Chicago Sun-Times, Valadez took Zantac for nearly two decades before being diagnosed with colon cancer, which she alleges the medication caused due to its active ingredient, ranitidine, turning into a carcinogenic substance known as NDMA over time.
With jury selection wrapped up earlier this week, this lawsuit marks the first of its kind to make it to trial after numerous other cases were either settled or dropped. Mikal Watts, Valadez's lawyer, didn't hesitate to lay out accusations that the drugmakers were more concerned about profits than patient safety. He claimed that GSK failed to properly store and transport Zantac, leading to dangerous levels of NDMA in the product. To further illustrate, Watts said, "This product is sensitive to temperature. … You gotta protect this product, and they didn’t," according to an account by the Chicago Sun-Times.
On the other side, defense attorneys argue that there is no scientific proof to support such claims. "Since 2019, there have been 16 peer-reviewed epidemiological studies conducted looking at human data regarding the use of Zantac (ranitidine), and the resulting scientific consensus is that there is no consistent or reliable evidence that ranitidine increases the risk for any type of cancer," a GSK spokesperson stated. Meanwhile, counsel for both companies attempted to dissociate the medication from Valadez's condition by pointing to other health factors that could have contributed to her cancer.
Valadez's case has become the focal point of a far-reaching legal battle, with reports indicating that a federal judge in Florida had dismissed some 50,000 claims due to lack of scientific backing outside of litigation. Despite this setback for many plaintiffs, Valadez's attorneys are determined to demonstrate that Zantac manufacturers knowingly disregarded risks associated with NDMA. "Customers aren't usually following medical literature or FDA recalls," Valadez's attorney Ashley Keller told NBC Chicago, indicating that most people only learned about the potential dangers through legal advertisements.
Both GSK and Boehringer Ingelheim strongly deny the allegations, reiterating that the scientific evidence doesn't support the cancer claims. "The totality of the scientific evidence, which includes numerous recently conducted epidemiological studies, points to only one conclusion: Zantac does not cause any type of cancer. We will continue to defend any allegations otherwise," a Boehringer Ingelheim spokesperson affirmed in a statement to NBC Chicago. The trial is being closely watched as it could set precedents for the thousands of cases still on hold.
