Say Goodbye to Liver Cancer with a Non-Statin Cholesterol-Lowering Drug

Primary liver cancer is a malignant tumor that starts in the liver. It is the sixth most commonly occurring cancer worldwide and the third leading cause of cancer mortality ().

A new study highlights that one particular type of non-statin cholesterol-lowering medications was associated with a lower risk of liver cancer.

Liver Cancer
Liver or hepatic cancer is an abnormal growth of cells in the liver. The leading cause of the disease is cirrhosis or scarring of the liver tissue.

‘Like statins, cholesterol absorption inhibitors (a type of non-statin cholesterol-lowering drug) are associated with a 31 percent lower risk of developing liver cancer. #LiverCancer #medindia #statins’

Past studies have suggested that taking cholesterol-lowering statin drugs may lower individuals’ risk of developing liver cancer.

In a new study of non-statin cholesterol-lowering medications, one type was linked to lower risks of liver cancer. The findings are published by Wiley online in CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society ().

Types of Non-Statin Cholesterol-Lowering Drugs

Cholesterol absorption inhibitors, bile acid sequestrants, fibrates, niacin, and omega-3 fatty acids are types of non-statin cholesterol-lowering medications prescribed to manage cholesterol and lipid levels. The different classes of drugs work in different ways.

Current Treatments for Liver Cancer
Current Treatments for Liver Cancer (also known as hepatoma or hepatocellular carcinoma) can result in complete cure of the disease if it is detected early.

A team led by Katherine A. McGlynn, Ph.D., MPH, of the National Cancer Institute, looked for associations between these five types of non-statin cholesterol-lowering medications and risk of liver cancer.

The investigators used information from the Clinical Practice Research Datalink (CPRD), a primary care database that covers approximately 7% of the United Kingdom population. Their analysis included 3,719 liver cancer cases and 14,876 matched controls without cancer. Additional matches were also made based on individuals’ type 2 diabetes and chronic liver disease status.

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Effect of Non-Statin Cholesterol-Lowering Drugs on Liver Cancer

Use of cholesterol absorption inhibitors was associated with 31% lower odds of liver cancer risk in the overall analysis. These medications were also linked with a lower risk of liver cancer in analyses based on diabetes and liver disease status. The study also confirmed that statins were associated with 35% lower odds of liver cancer.

No associations with liver cancer risk were observed for fibrates, omega-3 fatty acids, or niacin. While bile acid sequestrant use was associated with higher odds of liver cancer risk in the overall analysis, the results of analyses based on diabetes and liver disease status were inconsistent, suggesting that replication of these observations is important.

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“As few studies have examined the effects of non-statin cholesterol-lowering drugs on liver cancer risk, the results of our study require replication in other populations. If our findings are confirmed in other studies, however, our results may inform liver cancer prevention research,” said Dr. McGlynn.

References:

Global cancer statistics 2018: GLOBOCAN estimates of incidence and mortality worldwide for 36 cancers in 185 countries - (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30207593/)
Use of cholesterol-lowering medications in relation to risk of primary liver cancer in the Clinical Practice Research Datalink - (https://doi.org/10.1002/cncr.35436)

Source-Eurekalert