Issue 178 Item 13 Statins Linked to Lower Risk of Breast Cancer by 68%

Statins and other lipid-lowering drugs are associated with reduction in the risk of breast cancer, according to the results of a multicenter, prospective cohort study.

“While scientists have known for years that cholesterol inhibition serves to inhibit tumor cell growth, our analysis is one of the first to look exclusively at the relationship between lipid-lowering medications and the development of breast cancer, and our findings are dramatically positive,” lead author Jane Cauley, DrPH, from the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health in Pennsylvania, says in a news release.

At four community-based U.S. clinical centers in Pittsburgh, Baltimore, Minneapolis, and Portland, 7,528 white women (mean age, 77 years) were followed for an average of 6.8 years. Of the women, 244 developed breast cancer confirmed by medical record and pathology reports, and 576 (7.7%) reported use of lipid-lowering drugs.

The age-adjusted incidence of breast cancer was 3.1 per 1,000 person-years for statin users, 1.4 for users of other lipid-lowering agents, and 5.0 for nonusers. Compared with women who did not use lipid-lowering drugs, the relative risk (RR) of breast cancer, adjusted for age and weight, was 0.28 for statin users (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.09 – 0.86) and 0.37 (95% CI, 0.14 – 0.99) for women who used other lipid-lowering drugs.

Risk reduction was 68% (95% CI, 32% – 85%) in the combined group of lipid-lowering drug users. Adjustment for hormone use, family history of breast cancer, mammography use, and other risk factors did not affect these findings.

Study limitations include the small number of cases, observational study design, possible residual confounding by unmeasured factors, and no information on the duration of statin use or past use of statins.

“There is a significant difference in the percentage of breast cancer events between women who used lipid-lowering drugs and those who did not, and these findings have important public health implications given the widespread use of these medications today,” Dr. Cauley says. “Our findings need confirmation by other, larger studies involving more women and randomized clinical trials before we can recommend therapeutic interventions to prevent breast cancer with these agents.”

Public Health Service research grants supported this study. Ongoing trials involving 161,000 women in the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) are testing the hypothesis that reduction in total fat will result in a decreased risk of breast cancer, as well as preventive measures for heart disease, osteoporosis, and cancer of the breast and colon. J Womens Health. 2003;12(8):749-756

================================

FACT: First-Borns and Babies Born in Winter more Likely to Develop Type 1:
The onset of type 1 diabetes, according to Harvard researchers studying environmental effects on the illness, shows seasonal variation, with the onset peaking during winter months. Type 1 is also more prevalent amount children born first in the family. The study notes a decreased incidence as birth order increased. Journal of Pediatric Edocrinology and Metabolism, 6/03