Summaries of Must-Read Clinical Literature, Guidelines, and FDA Actions
Association of Statin Use With Risk of Specific Prostate Cancer
Key clinical point: Statin use might be associated with reduced prostate cancer risk.
Major finding: Protective association was observed only when statins had been used for a relatively longer duration or higher dose, and were more pronounced for prostate cancer of higher Gleason score.
Study details: A cohort study at a tertiary hospital was conducted using longitudinal data of electronic medical records from 1994 – 2016 on cancer-free men aged >18 years at baseline with follow-up time of ≥12 months.
Citation:
Wang K, et al. Cancer Med. 2019 Oct 8. doi: 10.1002/cam4.2500.
Several studies have suggested a potential cancer prevention role for statins in many cancers. Statins inhibit cholesterol synthesis, and these drugs may affect cancer-causing pathways in cancer. The study by Wang et al. evaluated a cohort of prostate cancer patients for such an association. They discovered that a longer duration and higher dose of a statin drug was associated with a lower risk of high- and low-grade prostate cancer. While the result was positive, it is unclear how it fits in with several other conflicting studies. These findings suggest that a long-term clinical trial is needed to answer this question. —Mark A. Klein, MD