Zantac Cancer Lawsuits Continue To Be Filed More Than 5 Years After Recall

Global Zantac recalls were issued in late 2019, after the active ingredient was found to release NDMA, a known human carcinogen that can potentially cause cancer years later.

A New Jersey man has filed a Zantac lawsuit in Delaware against Boehringer Ingelheim, indicating that the recalled heartburn drug caused him to develop prostate cancer, kidney cancer and liver cancer, years after the medication was removed from the market.

The complaint (PDF) was brought by George Kimmerling in Delaware Superior Court on June 2, where tens of thousands of similar claims have been filed in recent years, alleging that Boehringer Ingelheim failed to adequately warn consumers about the potential Zantac cancer risks, which can occur when the active ingredient converts to a known human carcinogen inside the body.

Zantac (ranitidine) was sold by Boehringer Ingelheim and various other drug makers as a safe and effective heartburn treatment until a series of recalls were issued in late 2019, after regulators discovered that the active pharmaceutical ingredient is inherently unstable and produces high levels of the chemical byproduct N-Nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA).

Over the past five years, tens of thousands of similar Zantac lawsuits have been filed in state and federal courts by users who developed various forms of cancer, including bladder cancer, esophageal cancer, liver cancer, pancreatic cancer, stomach cancer and other malignancies. 

Although several drug makers have reached agreements to settle claims over their role in the litigation, new Zantac cancer lawsuits continue to be brought as former users discover that their recent diagnosis may have been the result of prior use of the heartburn treatment.

Kimmerling’s lawsuit indicates he used both brand-name and generic versions of Zantac from about January 1990 until roughly January 2019. As a direct result of that prior exposure to NDMA in Zantac, Kimmerling indicates he has now  been diagnosed with prostate cancer, kidney cancer and liver cancer.

Zantac was originally developed by GlaxoSmithKline and introduced in 1983.  However, Boehringer Ingelheim owned the rights to over-the-counter Zantac from December 2006 until January 2017. During that time, Kimmerling claims that Boehringer Ingelheim knew, or should have known, about the presence of NDMA, a byproduct of the generic manufacturing process for ranitidine, and that Zantac use could cause cancer.

“Based on prevailing scientific evidence, exposure to Ranitidine-Containing Drugs (and the attendant NDMA) can cause prostate cancer, kidney cancer, and bladder cancer in humans. Had any Defendant warned Plaintiff that Ranitidine-Containing Drugs could lead to exposure to NDMA or, in turn, cancer, Plaintiff would not have taken Ranitidine-Containing Drugs.”

– Kimmerling v. Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc., et al.

Kimmerling presents claims of manufacturing defect, design defect, failure to warn and general negligence. He seeks both compensatory and punitive damages,

June 2025 Zantac Cancer Lawsuits Update  

Originally focused in the federal court system, Zantac lawsuits at the federal level were dismissed by U.S. District Judge Robin L. Rosenberg in a controversial ruling in 2022, which excluded all plaintiffs’ expert witnesses from testifying at trial under federal evidentiary rules.

Appeals are currently being pursued to overturn that decision. However, the federal ruling did not have any impact on tens of thousands of lawsuits filed in Illinois, California, Delaware and various other state courts, where different standards for the admissibility of expert witness testimony apply.

Last year saw some major Zantac settlement agreements announced, but did not include significant resolutions for claims filed against Boehringer Ingelheim. Instead, in November GlaxoSmithKline announced it would pay about $2.2 billion in Zantac settlements to resolve about 80,000 claims over its role in the development and sale of the heartburn drug, which have mostly been concentrated in Delaware state court.

In early 2024, Pfizer and Sanofi also agreed to pay hundreds of millions in Zantac settlements to resolve claims involving their versions of the medication.

Thousands of Zantac lawsuits still remain unresolved and continue to make their way through state court systems, as lawyers continue to investigate and file claims involving new cancers diagnosed in former users.