A group of widely-used cholesterol-lowering medications may also reduce cancer risk in older adults.
A Deakin University study has found a possible link between use of statins and reduced risk of developing cancer in people aged over 65 years.
Cancer remains a global public health crisis, with nearly 20 million new cases and 10 million deaths each year. Older adults account for 64% of cases and over 71% of cancer-related deaths. As cancer rates increase with age, effective preventive strategies can contribute to healthy ageing, improved quality of life, and a reduced disease burden on the health system.
‘The study shows promising results that could have wide-ranging implications for older Australians, who are not only more impacted by cancer, but who are also more likely to be taking a statin medication already,’ said Deakin researcher, Gebiso Debele from the Institute for Mental and Physical Health and Clinical Translation (IMPACT).
Repurposing existing medications for other uses is an exciting field of study and if statins can pull double-duty as a cancer preventative that would be a huge win for those affected and for the wider community.
Gebiso Debele, Deakin researcher
Working towards healthier ageing
This observational study involved 12,557 older adults, who had no cardiovascular events, dementia, and independence-limiting physical disability at enrolment using previous high-quality data from a large, multicentre randomised study (ASPREE) that involved two continents (USA and Australia).Results showed that statin use was significantly associated with a lower risk of any cancer, with indications that the association may vary by cancer type and the specific properties of statins.
‘Should these findings be confirmed down the track, this could mean older Australians are able to enjoy a longer, healthier life, with a lower disease load on individuals and our wider medical health system, however we should remain cautious until such confirmation is obtained from future research,’ said Mr Debele.
The study highlights the need for further long-term randomised controlled trials to confirm the association between statin use and reduced cancer risk.
This article was originally created and published by Deakin Research and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0).
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