HWN Suggests

Ranitidine (Zantac®) Making a Comeback

“Where can I find Zantac?”. From April 2020 to May 2021, the answer was, you cannot. On April 1, 2020, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ordered for all ranitidine (Zantac®)- containing products to be removed from the U.S. market. Ranitidine was a popular over-the-counter (OTC) and prescription medication treating heartburn, acid reflux, stomach ulcers, gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD)...

However, more than a year after the drug recall, Zantac® was “reformulated” and made a comeback into the consumer market as Zantac 360°™ in original strength (10 mg of famotidine) and in maximum strength (20 mg of famotidine). No longer containing the original active ingredient, ranitidine…

read full article

Featured

 Is Zantac Back on the Market?

The Zantac brand of heartburn medication has returned to pharmacy and store shelves, but in a different form. Following a major recall and allegations that NDMA contamination in Zantac causes cancer, manufacturers have updated the Zantac formula to remove potentially dangerous ranitidine and replace it with another ingredient called famotidin

 Large Study Eases Fears Over Zantac-Cancer Link

People who took ranitidine (Zantac) for at least a month were no more likely to develop cancer than people who used other histamine-2 receptor antagonists (H2RAs), according to a retrospective observational study with a multinational cohort.

Articles of Interest

Has heartburn pill given to millions harmed patients?

An ingredient in Zantac has been linked to cancer - and now patients in the United States are suing drug makers, writes John Naish.

Update: The FDA Wants Zantac Off Shelves Because of a Possibly Carcinogenic Impurity

An epidemiologist explains what to know.

Zantac, Ranitidine Pulled From Market, Here Are FDA’s Latest Cancer Concerns

So if you are taking any type of OTC ranitidine, whether it is Zantac or some other version, whether it is tablets or liquids, stop it. Stop it now. If you are worried that your “heatburn will go on,” there are a number of other options. Usually, you should try lifestyle modifications first before opting to take a heartburn medication anyway.

FDA asks manufacturers to recall heartburn drugs over traces of a possible carcinogen

After months of deliberation, the Food and Drug Administration has asked all manufacturers of a particular heartburn medicine known as ranitidine, sold under several brands including Zantac, to withdraw their drugs because “unacceptable levels” of a possible carcinogen may develop in the pills over time.

FDA Finds Probable Carcinogen in Some Versions of Zantac

The agency said it is evaluating whether the low amounts of the chemical, known as NDMA, pose a risk to patients. It said it would make that assessment available publicly as soon as possible.

Pharmacy head who researched Zantac link to carcinogen says FDA has ‘downplayed the problem’

We spoke with David Light, a co-founder and chief executive officer, about the decision to look for NDMA and why he believes that regulators are failing to characterize the problem properly.

The Best Alternatives to Zantac, Which the FDA Just Recalled Due to Possible Cancer Risk

If you’ve been relying on Zantac for relief, Dr. Farhadi recommends looking into famotidine (Pepcid). “It works in a similar fashion,” she says.

The FDA just pulled popular heartburn drug Zantac due to cancer risk

“It’s important to note that there are no data available linking ranitidine to cancer in humans,” Harvard epidemiology professor Joshua Gagne says, “only data showing that some ranitidine products that have been tested contain NDMA.”

Zantac in global recall over 'unacceptable' levels of potential carcinogen

Zantac, also sold generically as ranitidine, is the latest drug in which cancer-causing impurities have been found. Regulators have been recalling some blood pressure and heart failure medicines since last year.

Zantac Products Should Not Be Sold or Used, F.D.A. Warns, Citing Cancer Danger

Although most drugmakers had already pulled the heartburn products months ago, the agency told consumers they should throw out any over-the-counter medications they still had.

Zantac unlikely to turn into cancer-causing chemical in the body, but concerns remain about how drugs age on the shelf

Unfortunately for the buying public, emerging evidence suggests that NDMA can also be created as some pills sit on the store shelf or medicine cabinet. Thus, there is no way to test for its presence in the factory.

Resources

DrugWatch

Zantac (ranitidine) is used to treat or relieve heartburn, acid indigestion, GERD and gastric ulcers. It belongs to a class of drugs called H2 blockers. The FDA issued a recall after Zantac made with ranitidine was found to contain the carcinogen NDMA. A reformulated Zantac, Zantac 360, is currently available with famotidine replacing ranitidine.