Taking statins — the pills doctors give to lower cholesterol — doesn’t make you more likely to get cancer or die from it, even if your cholesterol is already pretty low.

76

Pro

0

Against

Evidence from Studies

Supporting (1)

76

Community contributions welcome

76

The effects of lowering LDL cholesterol with statin therapy in people at low risk of vascular disease: meta-analysis of individual data from 27 randomised trials

Systematic Review With Meta-Analysis

Human

This big study looked at thousands of people taking statins and found no link between statins and getting cancer or dying from cancer — even in people with very low cholesterol or low heart disease risk.

Contradicting (0)

0

Community contributions welcome

No contradicting evidence found

Gold Standard Evidence Needed

According to GRADE and EBM methodology, here is what ideal scientific evidence would look like to definitively prove or disprove this specific claim, ordered from strongest to weakest evidence.

Source Study

The effects of lowering LDL cholesterol with statin therapy in people at low risk of vascular disease: meta-analysis of individual data from 27 randomised trials

Score: 76

DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(12)60367-5

Similar Assertions

Taking statins — the pills doctors give to lower cholesterol — doesn’t make you more likely to get cancer or die from it, even if your cholesterol is already pretty low.

76

0

100%

Taking statins to lower your 'bad' cholesterol by about 1 point (in mmol/L) can cut your risk of dying from heart problems by 12% and your overall risk of dying by 9%, without raising your risk of dying from other causes like cancer or accidents.

76

0

86%

Taking statins to lower your 'bad' cholesterol by a small amount can cut your chance of having a heart attack by nearly half—even if you're not at high risk for heart disease yet.

76

0

86%

Taking statins to lower your 'bad' cholesterol by about 39 mg/dL can reduce your risk of dying from any cause by 9%, and it doesn’t make you more likely to die from cancer or other non-heart problems.

76

0

83%

Taking statins can lower your bad cholesterol enough to cut your chance of needing heart surgery or stents by almost half—even if you're not at high risk for heart disease right now.

76

0

82%