Long-term use of anti-cholesterol drugs and cancer risks in a Japanese population

Sci Rep. 2024 Feb 5;14(1):2896. doi: 10.1038/s41598-024-53252-4.

Abstract

Several studies have investigated the association between the use of anti-cholesterol drugs and cancer risks, of which results have been inconsistent. This study included 67,768 participants from the Japan Public Health Center-based Prospective Study. The data on anti-cholesterol drug use was collected using three questionnaires of the survey conducted every five years. We divided the participants into three groups according to the duration of the anti-cholesterol drug use. Multivariable-adjusted Cox proportional hazard regression models were used to calculate hazard ratios (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI). During the 893,009 person-years of follow-up from the 10-year follow-up survey, 8,775 participants (5,387 men and 3,388 women) were newly diagnosed with cancers. The duration of anti-cholesterol drug use was significantly associated with a decreased risk of liver cancer (HR:0.26, 95% CI 0.11-0.64 in > 5 y group) and with an increased risk of pancreatic cancer (HR:1.59, 95% CI 1.03-2.47 in > 5 y group). Moreover, a different trend was observed between men and women in the association with the risk of lung cancer. This study suggested that long-term use of anti-cholesterol drugs may have associations with a decreased incidence of liver cancer and with an increased incidence of pancreatic cancers.

MeSH terms

  • Female
  • Humans
  • Incidence
  • Japan / epidemiology
  • Liver Neoplasms*
  • Male
  • Pancreatic Neoplasms* / epidemiology
  • Proportional Hazards Models
  • Prospective Studies
  • Risk Factors