Ranitidine Use and Cancer Risk: Results from UK Biobank.

Ranitidine (brand name Zantac) is an H2-receptor antagonist (H2-blocker) commonly used to treat gastroesophageal reflux and peptic ulcer disease. After recent studies demonstrated ranitidine degrades to form high levels of N-Nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA), a potent carcinogen in animal models and probable human carcinogen,1,2 the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requested ranitidine sales be halted.3 As the implications for human carcinogenesis remain unclear, we evaluated the association between ranitidine use and cancer risk in UK Biobank.