Key clinical point: Use of a statin after breast cancer (BC) diagnosis improved survival in older women (age ≥ 66 years) with localized and regional stage disease, particularly in those with the hormone receptor-positive (HR+) human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-negative (HER2 −) subtype.
Major finding: Use vs no use of a statin postdiagnosis was associated with a 15% reduced risk for BC-specific mortality (hazard ratio 0.85; 95% CI 0.75-0.96), with the effect being more pronounced women with HR+/HER2 − BC (hazard ratio 0.71; 95% CI 0.57-0.88). There was no significant association between postdiagnosis statin use and the risk for BC recurrence (hazard ratio 1.05; 95% CI 0.91-1.21).
Study details: This retrospective cohort study included women with localized and regional stage BC from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER)–Medicare database who were assessed for mortality (n = 38,858) and recurrence (n = 28,522), of whom 8836 and 6475 used a statin postdiagnosis, respectively.
Disclosures: This study was supported by the US National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health. The authors declared no conflicts of interest.
Source: Guo H, Malone KE, Heckbert SR, Li CI. Statin use and risks of breast cancer recurrence and mortality . Cancer. 2024 (May 6) . doi: 10.1002/cncr.35362 Source