Statin administration after heart transplant reduces cancer risk: Study
22 May 2012
A study of transplant recipients in Switzerland has found that patients treated with statins were less likely to develop cancer and were less likely to die than those who were not taking the drug.
The effect had no relation to the patients' cholesterol level suggesting the drug may have other effects that had not been discovered until now.
The findings were reported at the Heart Failure Congress, a meeting of the European Society of Cardiology, in Belgrade, Serbia.
It comes following researchers saying everyone over the age of 50 should be prescribed statins as they reduced the risk of a heart attack or stroke even in those at a relatively low risk.
The leading cause death after heart transplantation is cancer, in patients who survive the initial operation and recovery.
The drugs that are given to suppress immune response in order to prevent donor organs from being rejected are known to increase the risk of cancer.
