Low dose statins increase risk of PC - Advanced Prostate...

Advanced Prostate Cancer

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Low dose statins increase risk of PC

Karmaji profile image
21 Replies

It may be useful to have comments on this....

Oncotarget. 2018 Jan 5; 9(2): 1494–1504.

Published online 2017 Oct 31. doi: 10.18632/oncotarget.22217

PMCID: PMC5788577

PMID: 29416709

Low-dose statin treatment increases prostate cancer aggressiveness

Difficult to follow this work as applied to PC patients with 10 mg atorvastatin

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Karmaji profile image
Karmaji
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21 Replies
Nirman profile image
Nirman

Ohhhh!!!! So how much dose one should take ?

bud_manning profile image
bud_manning in reply to Nirman

If you are lowering your cholesterol 10 mg seems to be fine. If you are concerned about PCa, you may want to consider 40 mg or more.But do not listen to me. The rule is - Do your own research.

Nirman profile image
Nirman

My dad takes rosuvastatin 10 mg + asprin 75 mg please guide me through it which is preventive and right dosage as per research

Karmaji profile image
Karmaji in reply to Nirman

I am in the same situation.... These studies are very limited. and speculative .. However, we would like some members more knowable to comment on this.... Till then I will stick to 10 mg + 200 mg aspirin as I have no kidney problem.....I take 500 mg metformin as well....

pjoshea13 profile image
pjoshea13

"Simvastatin was loaded in food pellets and provided ad libitum, thus enabling the uptake of simvastatin in an administration mode and concentration comparable to human subjects, including the activation of the drug in the liver.

"We established an experimental design in which we induced obesity by feeding the mice with western diet (containing high fat and carbohydrates), and once the obesity was achieved, simvastatin was loaded to the obesogenic diet

"At the end of the experiment, the weight of the mice on western diet was signicantly increased compared to mice on standard diet .., whereas simvastatin addition to western diet did not have an impact on this parameter.

"The combination of obesity and statin treatment increased prostate mass"

The big question I have concerns the high-fat mouse diet. There are a number of old mice studies that showed that a high-fat diet increases PCa aggressiveness. Dr. Steve Freedland discovered that the fat used in the standard mouse feed was corn oil. He repeated one such study with a different fat & found that the fat percentage was irrelevant.

I have been using Simvastatin (40 mg) for 15 years & am not about to stop. It isn't low-dose, but it isn't the 80 mg available in some countries (& grandfathered in the U.S.)

I would pay more attention to the human studies. Not intervention studies, unfortunately, but of great interest as they relate to PCa survival. Those studies have tended to report a dose-related benefit - & no increased mortality risk at the lower doses.

-Patrick

in reply to pjoshea13

I had my doctor increase my atorvastatin dose from 10 mg to 20 mg.

Karmaji profile image
Karmaji in reply to

when to increase from 10 to 20 mg...If all is ok..stay woth 10 mg...

any comments.'.?

in reply to Karmaji

Well after reading comments on this forum about the benefit of statins I had my dose increased.

LearnAll profile image
LearnAll

This study smells "fishy" I have read credible research from authentic researchers that Statins like Atorvastatin prolongs progression free and overall survival in PCa men. I am continuing with my Atorvastatin 10 mg a day.

cesces profile image
cesces

Mice?

Nothing here yet.

Muffin2019 profile image
Muffin2019

Have been on low dose of 10 mg of statin for 15 years but not stopping it at this point, my father had a stroke at 54 and massive heart attack at 74, granted he liked his fatty meat and smoked which I do not do. My brother has had 3 strokes, heart attack, bladder cancer, lost kidney from that and now has colon cancer. He did like his red meat and smoked for years and drinks a six pack of beer a day, that I do not do, most is an occasional small glass of red wine and an occasional beer in the summer. Everybody's different and handles things differently, I had two shots of the Madera vaccine with no side effects while others have had fever, chills and headaches for a day to 4 days.

LearnAll profile image
LearnAll in reply to Muffin2019

Smart people learn from other peoples mistakes...You are truly smart as you made good changes in your diet and life style watching what happened to your other family members.

Muffin2019 profile image
Muffin2019 in reply to LearnAll

Thank you, now if there was some sort of way we all could avoid this disease through something I would have done that but at least I may avoid a stroke or heart attack on top of this, you have alot of good information on this journey.

Karmaji profile image
Karmaji

It seems that in France one group is doing clinical study on Metformin atorvastatin and aspirin for PC patients. Do not have much info...A study on Metformin in 2017 2018 was badly designed to show metformin in very advance PC has no significance.....

..Suspicious about clinical studies when it involves off label drugs...

Do not ignore observation study

shared by our group..

Cooolone profile image
Cooolone

Wait... So the study is not based in human consumption. Was used after artificially creating obese test subjects that were then given a statin. Completely being ignored is the effect or creating a study group of the test subjects absent the statin but with the obesity and increased sugars and fats! And they made some sort of coherent assumption as to the result and it's causation?

I'll have to find it, but I'm pretty sure I've read the opposite, how statins improved outcomes due to the lower lipids. But hey, Google is everyone's friend, have fun!

I'm recently on statins, and now switching to mega Omega 3's (Vascepa)... And will continue, thank you.

MateoBeach profile image
MateoBeach

Statins can be titrated to the maximum tolerated dose ( no side effects). I have been on atorvastatin 80 mg for 28 years after a high calcium score on coronary EBT scan and family risk factors. Now I continue as part of my off label APC support regimen which includes metformin, celecoxib, aspirin 80, and now simvistatin. I won’t go easily into that goodnight. Not to PC nor to CVD.

Karmaji profile image
Karmaji in reply to MateoBeach

28 years for PC.....very inspiring for all

bud_manning profile image
bud_manning

From what I have read, statins at low dose (10 mg) may promote PCa progression. People who are using statins as part of an off-label protocol are using a much higher dose (40 to 80 mg). At the higher dose it seems to have a strong anti-PCa effect. Look up off-label drugs to fight cancer. Metformin, Atorvastatin, Mebendazole, and Doxycycline are the main ones. There is also evidence that they will enhance the effectiveness of chemo. And no, there are no human trials to use these drugs to treat cancer. They are all off patent. No one will spend the money. They are all safe for people with lo side effects. I an stage 4 PCa, doctor out of options. From what I read I have less than a year. I am starting the off-label drugs. Will let you know if it works.

HerbieP profile image
HerbieP

I take 80 mg atorvastatin before bed each night, and have been since November 2020 when I started taking the 4 off label drugs @bud_manning mentioned. I did a televisit with Care Oncology Dr. and got what they call the COC protocol, where the good Dr. prescribed 80 mg before bed.

I'm healthy asymptomatic APC dx spring 2018. Intermittent fasting cheating pescatarian diet. Treatments: Zytiga, Oriectomy (balls removed), Provenge, Erleada. Now on 5th course of 10 docetaxel with PSA ~50 and dropping, COC protocol. I blog in between each chemo session if you want to read my approach: standard of care plus whatever else doesn't do harm. whynotsmile.org/approach

j-o-h-n profile image
j-o-h-n

Stats in favor for your health......

Good Luck, Good Health and Good Humor.

j-o-h-n Wednesday 03/17/2021 11:01 PM DST

LowT profile image
LowT

From my experience the final story on statins has not been written. I was on high dose pravastatin for 12 years before realizing it was contributing to what had been diagnosed as late onset hypogonadism (LOH). Aches, pains, muscle weakness and loss, coordination, major cognitive issues, etc. All can be attributed low T (which was low along with very high FSH and LH) (Symptoms were also thought due to 'aging')!

Period on TRT did improve symptoms consistent with LOH and the primary hypogonadism numbers improved. Also felt much better on TRT.

However during those 12 yrs was Dx'd with PCa and had RARP. GS 3 + 4, SV-, extensive ECE, SM-. uPSAs followed closely while trialing TRT because of the PCa. Since stopping the TRT two years ago (due to very low levels of uPSA) and statin over a year ago, T levels has increased, symptoms of low T have pretty much disappeared, improved memory, cognition etc.

It is my understanding that statins at low dose are anti inflammatory. If anyone is interested in researching this I refer you to books by David Gravline, MD. Doctor and astronaut. Very interesting and thought provoking.

Anyway for me I am off statins. I can tolerate an elevated Chol, etc. but cannot tolerate going MAD!

To me it makes sense that T can be lowered by statins as it lowers Chol which is needed for T production and mental functioning, etc.

Perhaps the effect seen with APC patients from statins may be from lowering T levels.

I think there may be connection between T and statins effect on the mitochondria so maybe some crossover there. It is easy to get lost in trying to figure all this out in available literature. This is all very complex and interrelated which most published articles address very superficially, i.e. not measuring extensive hormone panels, (free T, TT, E2, TSH, PRL, LH, FSH, Cholesterol, Vitamin E, etc. ) BTW I also have treated hypothryoidism.

No question PCa is highly driven by hormones so why why stop with T levels only without looking at the entire metabolic profile. It seems so much of PCa treatment ends up just rearranging the "furniture on the Titanic".

I'm very interested in what you guys (all my teachers) have to say in this regard.

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