STATINS SLASH BREAST CANCER DEATH RATES

STATIN drugs can cut the risk of dying from breast cancer by 40%, a major study has found.

Researchers believe the pills dramatically boost survival rates by halting the growth of tumours.

They say that in future, statins – which are taken to lower cholesterol levels – will routinely be used to treat breast cancer alongside surgery, chemotherapy and other drugs.

The findings, based on data from almost 200,000 women with the disease, will be unveiled at the world’s largest cancer conference this weekend in Chicago. They showed that, on average, participants who had taken any kind of statin were 27% less likely to die within four years than those who had never used the drugs. The effect was far greater if they had taken a commonly used form of the drug, lipophilic statins.

These patients were 43% less likely to die from breast cancer.

Lead researcher Dr Binliang Liu said his findings suggested that statins ‘truly can change the prognosis of breast cancer’.

To examine the effect of statins on breast cancer, scientists from the National Cancer Centre in Beijing compiled previously published studies from Europe and the US.

These covered data about 197,048 women, including whether they happened to have been taking statins at the time of their breast cancer diagnosis. The researchers also compared which of the two main types of statins patients had used – lipophilic or hydrophilic.

Lipophilic statins, which include the generic names simvastatin and atorvastatin, dissolve in fat. Hydrophilic statins, such as fluvastatin, dissolve in water.

Women who had been taking hydrophilic statins were only 6% less likely to die in four years. The figure is so small it is not deemed scientifically significant.

The scientists believe lipophilic statins stop cancer cells growing and dividing, through a number of biological processes. They may also boost the immune system enabling it to better fight the cancer.

Dr Liu said in future, the pills should become a routine treatment for women with breast cancer, adding: ‘Statins can improve prognosis. Statins, especially lipophilic statins, will become important tools.’

The results will be presented to leading cancer doctors and academics from around the world at the American Society for Clinical Oncology conference in Chicago. The scientists did not look at whether the drugs prevented breast cancer in the first place nor whether they needed to be taken for a certain length of time to be effective.

Around one in eight women will develop breast cancer in their lifetime and the illness is becoming increasingly prevalent as the population ages.

Delyth Morgan, of the charity Breast Cancer Now, said: ‘This study adds to the emerging picture that some statins could be useful for treating breast cancer, but we would need to see clinical trials.’

She added: ‘To stop people dying from the disease, we need to block all of breast cancer’s escape routes – and some statins could yet prove a valuable addition to existing treatments to help do this.’

However last autumn, two leading medical journals went to war over the safety of statins.

The Lancet published a major study claiming the benefits of the pills outweighed the risks and could prevent 80,000 heart attacks and strokes a year. But the British Medical Journal warned they were more dangerous than previously thought and called for an independent review.

‘The pills should be routine treatment’