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Title: Statin Use Associated With Marked Decrease in Kidney Cancer Among US Veterans: Presented at AUA

"Statin Use Associated With Marked Decrease in Kidney Cancer Among US Veterans: Presented at AUA"

By Ed Susman ATLANTA, G.A. -- May 25, 2006 -- Patients who were being treated with statins for control of dyslipidemia appear to have a significantly reduced risk of kidney cancer, researchers said here at the American Urological Association Annual Meeting (AUA). Murali Ankem, MD, director, urologic laparoscopy, and chief, department of urology, Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Shreveport, Louisiana, led a team of researchers who mined the massive database of 10 Veterans Affairs hospitals in 8 states in the southern region of the US. The researchers checked hospital codes for kidney cancer and evidence of statin prescriptions in the records of 483,773 patients before they had their kidney cancer diagnosis. Of these, they found that 164,641 of these patients -- almost all men -- were treated with statins. In the total population studied there were 1,299 cases of kidney cancer. "We found that statins are associated with a 44% risk reduction of kidney cancer," Dr. Ankem said in a press briefing on May 22[^nd. "We found that this relationship between statins and kidney cancer existed even after we controlled for age, body mass index and smoking."

The analysis determined that use of statins resulted in a profound protective effect against kidney cancer (odds ratio 0.56, 95% CI 0.50 to 0.63, P <.05).

"Our data should be evaluated with caution, given the limitations of the population, the database and this being a case control study," Dr. Ankem noted.

He said that the doses of the statins taken by the patients, the duration of use of the drugs and the individual statin used were not factored into the analysis.

"We looked at statins and cancer because we understand that the drug's mechanism of action may prevent the cancer cells from attaching to other cells and therefore prevent its growth," he explained. He noted that animal models have also suggested that statins inhibit cancer growth and metastasis.

[Presentation title: Statins and Kidney Cancer Risk: A Large Case Control Study in veterans. Abstract 553]

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