Cholesterol-lowering statins may pull double duty: New research shows they not only help boost heart health, but also appear to be a promising, cost-effective way to reduce the risk of metastases in some cancers.
The study, by the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, reveals statins may block cancer cells’ ability to split off from the primary tumor and spread to other parts of the body,
Medical Xpress reports.
The discovery, published in the journal Scientific Reports, came as a surprise to the researchers and could pave the way for new cancer treatments based on the use of cholesterol-lowering drugs.
"We didn't plan to discover this — we were actually modeling metabolism of tumor cells and looking at the response of various tumor cells to existing drugs, including statins," said Zoltán Oltvai, M.D., associate professor of pathology at Pitt.
"But, sure enough, we were able to show that these cholesterol-lowering drugs interrupt the growth of some cancer cell lines that are very similar to those cancer cells that leave the primary tumor and eventually colonize other organs."
Past studies have suggested statins sometimes seem to fight cancer, but precisely how wasn’t known.
The Pitt researchers noted when a tumor metastasizes, it spreads cancer cells through the body using the blood stream. Cancer cells require the synthesis of cholesterol for that process. Statins, may block a key step in that process.
"While statins probably aren't going to be effective against a patient's primary tumor, they could work to block the tumor's ability to metastasize," Dr. Oltvai added. "And that is very important because most cancer patients die because of the metastases."
© 2025 NewsmaxHealth. All rights reserved.