A new study suggests that people with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) or small lymphocytic lymphoma (SLL) may live longer if they are already taking statin drugs—commonly used to lower cholesterol—at the start of their cancer treatment.
According to the research, published in Blood Advances, those who were on statins had a 61% lower chance of dying from their cancer than those who weren’t.
This is the first major study to look at how statins might affect survival in people with CLL or SLL who are receiving newer targeted cancer treatments, such as a drug called ibrutinib. The lead researcher, Dr. Ahmad Abuhelwa from the University of Sharjah, said the findings show a strong link between taking statins and living longer.
CLL and SLL are slow-growing blood cancers that affect similar types of white blood cells. CLL begins in the bone marrow and is the most common form of leukemia in adults in the U.S. SLL starts in the lymph nodes or spleen but is essentially the same disease as CLL in a different location.
Statins are some of the most commonly used medications in the world. More than 90 million Americans take them to reduce their cholesterol levels and lower the risk of heart attacks and strokes.
Earlier studies have hinted that statins might also help people with some types of cancer live longer, including CLL, but this new study is the first to focus on patients being treated with modern cancer therapies.
To carry out the study, researchers looked at data from 1,467 patients who took part in four international clinical trials between 2012 and 2019.
These patients were treated either with ibrutinib alone, in combination with other cancer drugs, or with other types of treatments not including ibrutinib. Nearly one-third of them—424 patients—were taking a statin when they started their cancer treatment.
The researchers followed the patients for several years to track how long they lived and how long they lived without their cancer getting worse. They also looked at whether these patients had any severe side effects. The average follow-up time was five years for overall survival and nearly two years for cancer progression.
Even after adjusting for many possible differences between patients—like their age, overall health, the type of cancer treatment they received, and other health conditions—the results stayed consistent. Statin users had a 61% lower risk of dying from their cancer, a 38% lower risk of dying from any cause, and a 26% lower risk of their cancer getting worse.
Importantly, taking statins did not lead to more severe side effects. That means the potential benefits didn’t come with any extra health risks, at least during the time the patients were monitored.
Still, Dr. Abuhelwa warned that this type of study can’t prove for certain that statins caused the improved survival. It’s possible that other hidden factors were involved.
For example, people in clinical trials are closely monitored and may receive better overall care. Also, different patients took different kinds of statins at different doses, so it’s unclear which specific drugs or dosages might work best.
Dr. Abuhelwa says the next step should be to run lab studies to understand how statins might affect cancer cells, followed by clinical trials where patients are randomly given statins or not. That’s the only way to know if statins directly help cancer patients or if something else is responsible for the better outcomes.
In summary, this research gives hope that a common and affordable medication—originally meant for heart health—might one day play a role in cancer care. However, more research is needed before doctors can recommend statins as part of the standard treatment for CLL or SLL.
For now, the study highlights an exciting new direction in cancer research and raises important questions about how medications we already use might have unexpected benefits.
If you care about heart health, please read studies that yogurt may help lower the death risks in heart disease, and coconut sugar could help reduce artery stiffness.
For more information about health, please see recent studies that Vitamin D deficiency can increase heart disease risk, and results showing vitamin B6 linked to lower death risk in heart disease.
The research findings can be found in Blood Advances.
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