One of the most prescribed drugs in the UK could reduce the risk of dying from blood cancer by more than 60 per cent, a study has revealed.
Statins, a cholesterol-lowering medication taken by more than 7million people in the UK, lowers the risk of heart disease, which can lead to heart attacks or strokes.
But it’s also been suggested to reduce the death rates of several cancers, including Chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL) and small lymphocytic lymphoma (SLL), according to a study published today in the journal Blood Advances.
These are both types of slow-growing cancers. CLL starts in the blood-forming cells of the bone marrow and is a common form of leukaemia. SLL affects the same type of cells but starts in lymphoid tissues such as the spleen instead of in the blood-forming cells.
Researchers analysed data from 1,467 patents with CLL or SLL who participated in four international trials conducted between 2012 and 2019.
Each patient was either newly diagnosed, their blood cancer had come back or had not responded to prior treatment.
These trials saw patients randomly assigned ibrutinib, a targeted cancer drug, either alone or in combination with other anti-cancer drugs, or to a drug regimen that did not include ibrutinib.
A total of 424 patients (29 per cent) were taking a statin at the time they started treatment across the four clinical trials which looked at how long patients lived after starting treatment. They were followed up after five years for overall survival and 22 months for progression-free survival.
Researchers discovered that patients who took a statin had a 61 per cent reduced risk of dying from their cancer, a 38 per cent reduction in death of any cause and a 26 per cent reduced risk of disease progression.
Researchers adjusted their analysis for variables including each patient’s diagnosis, age, sex, weight, disease severity, length of time since their diagnosis, number of co-existing illnesses, use of other medications for heart conditions or high blood pressure, and the specific anti-cancer treatment regimen received.
“Our results highlight a strong link between statin use and improved survival in this patient population,” said the study’s principal investigator, Ahmad Abuhelwa, PhD, an assistant professor of pharmacy practice and pharmacotherapeutics at the University of Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates.
He added: “These findings don’t allow us to say for certain that statins directly improve cancer outcomes.
“However, the fact that this association remained strong even after accounting for multiple factors makes it an important area for future research.”
As next steps, he recommended conducting laboratory studies to better understand how statins may influence cancer biology, as well as prospective clinical trials in which patients with CLL or SLL are randomly assigned to take a statin or not.
