Cholesterol-Lowering Drugs Won't Cause Cancer

Related Encyclopedia • Adenocarcinoma of the Lung and Brain Metastases • Alzheimer's Disease • Aneurysms • Angina Pectoris More... Related Healthscout Videos Silent Killer Hungry Heart Challenging Mortality Stem Cell Solutions More... Related Animations • Alzheimer's Disease Video Animation • Angioplasty • Animation: What is Hypertension? • Breast Self-Exam Video More... Related Drug Information • Accupril • Actonel • Altace • Avapro More... Related News Articles • Health Tip: Eating Right While You're Pregnant • Cholesterol Screening Shouldn't Rely on Kids' Weight • Many Opt for Surgery to Lower Breast, Ovarian Cancer Risk • Beetroot Juice May Boost Stamina More...

Page:  << Prev | 1 | 2

One possible mechanism is that cancer itself reduces LDL cholesterol levels, he said. "This is especially true of cancers involving the blood cell system, but it also occurs with cancer of the kidney and elsewhere," Steinberg said.

"Whatever the mechanism, the main point should be that studies of much larger numbers of people in statin trials find no excess of cancers," he added.

Karas said he took "several important messages" from the studies. "We need to do a much better job of keeping track of these relationships," he said. "In major trials of statins, some do not even report on the number of cancers. We need a lot more research in this area. In terms of biology, virtually nothing is known."

Text Continues Below

---

And the case is not completely closed yet, said Dr. Ori Ben-Yehuda, professor of medicine at UCSD and co-author of a second editorial.

Studies thus far have dealt with people in the mass, comparing average levels of LDL cholesterol with overall cancer risk, Ben-Yehuda noted. "What we need is patient-level data to see whether a pattern emerges of different risks at different LDL levels," he said.

Lingering doubts should not stop people from using statins, especially for those who clearly are at risk of heart disease, Ben-Yehuda said. "But when we give medications to millions, we need information about risks versus benefits," he said. "There are some question marks, and they may change the risk-benefit ratio for some patients."

More information

There's more on statins at the American Heart Association.

Page:  << Prev | 1 | 2