Statins as a Secondary Preventive Agent for Metastatic Cancer

The case for promoting statins as secondary prevention agents for metastatic cancer received another boost with a recent report from Chen et al. 1 Chen W.M. Yu Y.H. Chen M. Shia B.C. Wu S.Y. Statin use during concurrent chemoradiotherapy with improved survival outcomes in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma: a propensity score-matched nationwide cohort study. J Thorac Oncol. 2023; 18: 1082-1093 Abstract Full Text Full Text PDF PubMed Scopus (3) Google Scholar The correlation revealed here reinforces those found in cancers of the breast and prostate, 2 Beckwitt C.H. Brufsky A. Oltvai Z.N. Wells A. Statin drugs to reduce breast cancer recurrence and mortality. Breast Cancer Res. 2018; 20: 144 Crossref PubMed Scopus (104) Google Scholar in which statins were found to associate with a significant decrease and delay in metastatic recurrence. As these impacts are isolated to metastatic outgrowth and do not decrease the occurrence of primary tumors, the recommendations should be limited to those persons with a moderate-to-high risk of metastatic spread. Statin Use During Concurrent Chemoradiotherapy With Improved Survival Outcomes in Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma: A Propensity Score-Matched Nationwide Cohort StudyJournal of Thoracic OncologyVol. 18Issue 8PreviewTo determine the effect of statin use during concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT) on overall survival and esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC)-specific survival in patients with ESCC receiving standard CCRT. Full-Text PDF