LONDON (Reuters) - Drug regulators in the United States and Europe said on Thursday they were reviewing the safety of ranitidine, used to treat acidity, known as Zantac, after it found traces of impurities that could cause cancer in some copies of the drug.
The US Food and Drug Administration said it had discovered impurities called n-nitrosodimethylamine in some drugs containing ranitidine.
The US administration and the European Medicines Agency have indicated that they will review the safety of the drug, but do not currently advise patients to stop taking it.
Faleshore Pharmacy, an online pharmacy that tests the treatments it sells to detect defects, was the first to inform regulators about impurities in ranitidine.