GSK (GSK.L) settled its first U.S. lawsuit alleging its discontinued heartburn medicine Zantac caused cancer on Friday, avoiding a trial next month.
The corporation announced a confidential settlement with Californian James Goetz, who claims the medicine caused bladder cancer.
On Friday, GSK said the settlement reflected its wish to prevent attention from protracted litigation. It denied guilt and vowed to fight any Zantac lawsuits.
On July 24, the jury would evaluate Zantac’s cancer claims.
At 0824 GMT, GSK.L’s shares were up 5.3%, giving it the biggest performer on London’s blue-chip FTSE 100 (.FTSE) and set for its best day since December.
“Our recent investor conversations suggested that it was this headline risk with a trial date right around the corner that was keeping investors on the sidelines in GSK,” Barclays analyst Emily Field wrote in a note.
Delaware has 78,000 state court cases, while California has few. One of the first pharmaceuticals to sell over $1 billion was Zantac, approved in 1983.
Pfizer (PFE.N), Boehringer Ingelheim, Sanofi (SASY.PA), and generic drugmakers sold it after a GSK predecessor advertised it.
Pfizer and Sanofi settled with Goetz late last year.
Over a week in August, GSK, Sanofi, Pfizer, and Haleon lost over $40 billion due to concerns about protracted legal battles and compensation.
In March, a California judge denied GSK’s request to exclude expert testimony on the drug’s cancer risk. Friday’s settlement follows that setback.
In December, a federal judge dismissed all 50,000 Zantac cases in U.S. federal courts after finding the plaintiffs’ expert witnesses’ cancer claims unsupported by science.
Some manufacturers and pharmacies stopped selling Zantac in 2019 due to concerns that ranitidine deteriorated to NDMA. Research has shown that higher levels of NDMA in food and water promote cancer.
In 2020, the FDA recalled all brand-name and generic Zantac, sparking a wave of lawsuits. Zantac firms have disputed cancer links.
