GSK has agreed to pay up to $2.2 billion to settle most lawsuits in US state courts claiming that a discontinued version of the heartburn drug Zantac caused cancer, the company announced on Wednesday.

GSK Plc shares surged after the UK pharma company agreed to pay as much as $2.2 billion to resolve about 80,000 US court cases alleging that its old reflux medication Zantac was contaminated with a suspected carcinogen.

GSK has agreed to pay $2.2 billion to settle most of the pending lawsuits that claimed a discontinued version of the Zantac heartburn medication caused cancer.

The settlement, which is at the low end of Jefferies analysts’ $2 billion to $3.5 billion estimate, will resolve 93% of the product liability cases regarding allegations that GSK’s heartburn drug could cause cancer.

GSK shares jumped as much as 6.5% on Thursday after the British drugmaker struck a $2.2 billion settlement over U.S. lawsuits that alleged its discontinued heartburn drug Zantac caused cancer.

GSK said it expects to take a charge of £1.8 billion ($2.3 billion) in its third-quarter results in relation to the settlements, which will be funded through "existing resources," and said there will be "no changes to GSK's growth agenda or investment plans for R&D as a result."

GSK has agreed to pay up to $2.2 billion to settle most lawsuits in U.S. state courts claiming that a discontinued version of the heartburn drug Zantac caused cancer, the company announced on Wednesday.

UK pharmaceutical giant GSK says it will pay as much as $2.2bn (£1.68bn) to settle thousands of cases in US courts over claims that a discontinued version of its heartburn drug Zantac caused cancer. The firm announced that it has reached agreements with 10 law firms who represent around 80,