UK families face compensation fight with GSK over Avandia drug GlaxoSmithKline has said it will continue to fight compensation claims from the relatives of people who died or where harmed by Avandia, which has been estimated to be responsible for 100,000 heart attacks in the US. The company has told claimants solicitors it will continue to contest cases even though it has already admitted hiding data that showed the potentially dangerous side-effects of the drug. In a statement to The Guardian, a spokesman for GSK said: "We have every sympathy for people with complications associated with diabetes and those who care for them, but unfortunately we are unable to comment on individual legal cases. We continue to believe that the company acted appropriately and responsibly in its management of Avandia. Avandia had its lice revoked by the European authorities in 2010 after evidence emerged that showed it could cause heart failure and heart attacks. The drug was originally introduced on the NHS in 2000 and was prescribed to people suffering from type 2 diabetes where their glucose levels were not being controlled by the standard drugs. At the time the drug was withdrawn, an estimated 90,000 people were taking it in the UK. Avandia is still prescribed in the US, but to people without heart problems.