|
|
|
|
|
|
TABLE OF CONTENTS
|
January 8, 2008 NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - In a large study of U.S. veterans, the use of a commonly prescribed class cholesterol-lowering drugs called "statins," which include drugs such as Lipitor, reduced the cancer rate by about 25 percent. Although laboratory studies have indicated that statins can inhibit cancer cell progression, clinical trials have failed to confirm these findings, Dr. Wildon R. Farwell and his associates note in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. They attribute the lack of evidence to the young age of trial participants and short follow-up periods. To circumvent these limitations, Farwell, at VA Boston HealthCare System, and his associates analyzed data from the Veterans Affairs administrative and clinical databases. They compared two groups: 26,000 patients who used blood pressure medications but no cholesterol-lowering medications and 27,000 patients who had used statins for at least 2 years. The average age was 66.5 years, all were free of overt cancer at study entry, and the average follow-up was 5.0 years. More than 96 percent were men. The incidence of cancer was 9.4 percent among statin users and 13.2 percent among nonusers, a statistically significant difference. After adjusting the data for the effects of age, weight, other diseases, smoking, cholesterol levels, and history of colon cancer screening tests, the risk developing any type of cancer was reduced by 26 percent in the statin group. This effect was statistically significant for colorectal cancer (35 percent lower risk), lung cancer (30 percent lower risk) and prostate cancer (10 percent lower risk). There was also a significant dose response, with higher drug doses correlating with lower cancer mortality rates. Additional studies "to evaluate statins as cancer preventive agents are needed to confirm or refute these findings," Farwell and his associates conclude. Copyright 2008 Reuters. Click for Restrictions.
|
