Another Statin Use - Prevent Lung Cancer?

Robert W. Griffith, MD

Statins seem to do everything, don't they? "The aspirin of the 21st century", indeed. Now a study reported in the journal Chest describes the possible association between lung cancer and the use of statins in Veterans Affairs patients. It seems that analysis of data from almost 500,000 patients from 8 US states found that statin use for more than 6 months was associated with a 55% reduction in the risk of lung cancer. These results were obtained after appropriate adjustments had been made for age, gender, body mass index (BMI), smoking, alcohol use, diabetes, and race. There was a decreased risk of lung cancer with increasing duration of statin use.

A similar statin-related reduction in the risk of breast cancer has been reported in the last 12 months, and other cancers appear to be lessened. These results were obtained in a retrospective epidemiological study, and don't prove anything. Indeed, an accompanying editorial in the same journal raises a concern about the study design. But the findings certainly make the case for further studies as to a possible mechanism of a protective effect of statins in several forms of cancer. As the journals say: "Larger and longer-term studies are needed to determine the potentially protective effect of statin use on cancer development." But if you're already taking a statin, make sure you keep taking it; adherence can be a problem, but these findings make it worth while.

Source
HealthandAge Blog

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