Statins and Cancer

[LC FP]

We've often heard the "excuse" that people with low cholesterols have higher mortality because they are probably dying of cancer. Maybe it's true. That could explain the results of this retrospective VA study. No doubt people with high cholesterols in the VA are on statins. Thats the way the VA works. If people on statins get less cancer, maybe that's because their cholesterol was higher??

Or am I a victim of convoluted logic?

From Journal of the National Cancer Institute
The Association Between Statins and Cancer Incidence in a Veterans Population
Posted 06/05/2008

Wildon R. Farwell; Richard E. Scranton; Elizabeth V. Lawler; Robert A. Lew; Mary T. Brophy; Louis D. Fiore; J. Michael Gaziano


Abstract
Background: Meta-analyses of trials of 3-hydroxy-3-methyl-glutaryl-CoA reductase inhibitors or statins for cardiovascular disease prevention have failed to show any statistically significant benefit of statins for cancer prevention. However, these trials included relatively young participants, who develop few cancers, and their follow-up periods may have been too short to detect an association between statin use and cancer incidence. We investigated this association in a population of veterans.
Methods: We identified patients using antihypertensive medications but no cholesterol-lowering medications (n = 25 594) and patients using statins (n = 37 248) who were enrolled in the Veterans Affairs New England Healthcare System between January 1, 1997, and December 31, 2005. Age- and multivariable-adjusted Cox proportional hazards models were used to calculate the hazard ratio (HR) and its 95% confidence interval (CI) for cancer incidence, excluding nonmelanoma skin cancer, among patients taking statins compared with patients taking antihypertensive medications and among patients grouped by statin dose (as equivalent simvastatin dose). All statistical tests were two-sided.
Results: The absolute incidence of total cancers was 9.4% among statin users and 13.2% among nonusers (difference = 3.8%, 95% CI = 3.3% to 4.3%, Pdifference < .001). Statin users had a statistically significant lower risk for total cancer than nonusers after adjustment for age (HR = 0.76, 95% CI = 0.73 to 0.80) and multiple potential confounders (HR = 0.74, 95% CI = 0.70 to 0.78). After multivariable adjustment, a statistically significantly decreased risk of all cancers was also associated with increasing statin use (Ptrend < .001).
Conclusions: Patients using statins may be at lower risk for developing cancer. Additional observational studies and randomized trials of statins for cancer prevention are warranted.

[Zuleikaa]

We've often heard the "excuse" that people with low cholesterols have higher mortality because they are probably dying of cancer. Maybe it's true. That could explain the results of this retrospective VA study. No doubt people with high cholesterols in the VA are on statins. Thats the way the VA works. If people on statins get less cancer, maybe that's because their cholesterol was higher??

Or am I a victim of convoluted logic?Well, they've found that people on statins have higher levels of vitamin D, that in some way statins are protective of vitamin D. Also, people need cholesterol to synthesize vitamin D from the sun. Also, people with the lowest levels of cholesterol have less vitamin D. Vitamin D protects against cancers. Sounds sort of logical to me that they would be connected.

[LC FP]

So if you go to the VA, taking a statin is a marker that your vitamin D level is adequate. That's probably more likely!