PROTECTIVE EFFECT OF STATINS AGAINST LIVER CANCER CONFIRMED

摘要

Statins target the production of cholesterol in the liver. There is evidence from Asia, which has high rates of liver cancer, that statins protect against this malignancy; now, a similar protective effect has been demonstrated in the UK, which has a low rate of the disease. According to a case-control study using UK data and published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute (online, 26 February 2015), people taking statins had a reduced risk for developing primary liver cancer. The adjusted odds ratio was 0.55 for ever-use versus non-use (95% confidence interval 0.45 to 0.69), and the effect remained significant irrespective of presence or absence of diabetes or liver disease.