GSK to recall Ranitidine from India after regulator alert

British drugmaker will suspend release, distribution and supply of the heartburn drug.

British drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline said it is recalling heartburn drug Ranitidine from India, a day after the country’s drug regulator asked pharma companies to check their products for carcinogen. “As a precautionary action, GSK has made the decision to initiate a voluntary recall (pharmacy/retail level recall) of Zinetac Tablets 150 mg and 300 mg products manufactured in India using API sourced from Saraca Laboratories Ltd,” a GSK spokesperson said in a statement. Earlier this month, the US FDA had raised a global alarm over the presence of a probable cancer causing substance—NDMA or NNiteosodimethylamine—in some Ranitidine medicines.