Cholesterol-lowering statin drugs have been found to boost the survival of lung cancer patients.

New research published in the journal Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, suggests the inexpensive drugs, widely prescribed to boost heart health, may pull double-duty when it comes to cutting the death risk from cancer.

Lead researcher Chris Cardwell, a medical statistics expert with the Centre for Public Health at Queen's University Belfast in Northern Ireland, noted the findings are based on analysis of nearly 14,000 British patients diagnosed with lung cancer between 1998 and 200.

The results showed those who used statins had up to a 19 percent reduction in lung cancer-related deaths, compared to those who did not.

"Our study provides some evidence that lung cancer patients who used statins had a reduction in the risk of death from lung cancers,” said Cardwell said. “The magnitude of the association was relatively small…however, this finding is worthy of further investigation in observational studies."