I’m unable to take statins having tried several I landed up with rhabid( whatever the word is) loosing muscle and feeling very poorly. I have been prescribed estemibe. I have stomache problems with all the heart meds and I have persisted with estemibe because I’ve got genetic high cholesterol. The other day I read the gumf and was quite shocked to see Breast or colon cancer listed as one of the downsides.
Hang on there!!! I’m trying to avoid strokes etc and niw dicing with two nasty cancers. I don’t want to take this now.
Has anyone got anything to add to this.
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Fynndog
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I am also on Ezetimibe with Rosuvastatin for Familial HyperCholesteroleimia.I've just reread a few pieces of research on the information about Ezetimibe and the potential of increased cancer risk.
The further trials on Ezetimibe alone , or Ezetimibe with Statins appear to show that the original study about these links may have been incorrect.
The original SEAS study found a small increase in risk of two cancers when Ezetimibe was taken in combination with Simvastatin.
This created a sense of caution.
However, the 21 month SEAS follow up data seems to dispute it's original conclusions about these risks and did not show the same risk or association.
Since then , other studies on Ezetimibe, including the SHARP and IMPROVE-IT trials show no connection between increased cancer risks and the use of Ezetimibe with or without statins.
This has been reassuring for researchers but because some of the studies were shorter than the SEAS project and not double blind they still want further long term studies and analysis to be 100% confident, and therefore to be able to remove the warning from any leaflets.
More positively , in fact , other studies about the mechanisms of Ezetimibe and it's lipid lowering and inflammation reduction abilities seems to indicate it could offer some protection against the risk of certain cancers , particularly those relating to the liver and gall bladder as well as giving some protection against cardiovascular issues.
Ezetimibe in trials on mice and rats seems to have the capability to be used therapeutically in cancer treatment and tumour reduction , and other studies show Ezetimibe is not carcinogenic.
These findings still need to be assessed to see how efficient Ezetimibe could be alone in cancer treatment in trials on Cancer patients but the results are promising and seem to prove Ezetimibe could help in the reduction of risks rather than being a risk in itself.
Ezetimibe alone or in combination with Statins , therefore, appears to be safe and could have the potential of reducing the risk of various health issues including some cancers as well as having a lipid lowering effect and controlling cholesterol.
I would assume that the only group of people whom may need to check with a GP or Specialist whether it is right for their use would be patients with a high genetic or family risk of breast or intestinal cancer and that may only be necessary if they are using Simvastatin as well.
After a recheck I'm still happy to take my Ezetimibe and Rosuvastatin. Hope that puts your mind at ease but if you are still concerned talk to your GP or Specialist for more reassurance before you stop taking it.
The benefits to me still seem to far outweigh the risk which may not actually be the cause for concern that one study originally concluded.
thank you Bee . What a perfect reply. You’ve set my mind at ease. What a powerhouse of information you are. Just proving what a great source this site is. Thank you again. Regards Lìnda
Bee, I shall be consulting you in future about my and my family’s medical issues rather than the medical and pharmaceutical profession!! What a fount of information you are!
Oh, I'm the first to say that your GP or a Specialist is the first to check everything with. But , if in doubt , do you research and recheck it to make sure you're right!
I've just got a lot of health conditions , some since childhood , many less known or treated by most GPs and have had to do a lot of research over the years to get my diagnosis right and find the best meds and self care for me.
I'm happy to pass on that info and any tips if I can as I know it can feel like a full time job getting all the facts on your treatment and medications , and most doctors don't have time to explain all the whys and were first in a normal appointment.
Take care , and thanks for the compliment, have a lovely well paced weekend , Bee
have you tried a whole food plant based diet? You find information, If you look up Ornish, Esselstyn or Barnard, you'll find plenry If information. All the best! Julia
Blimey I certainly hope there is no, or at least very very little , link between Ezetimibe and increased risk of cancer! I’ve recently started on it alongside Atorvastatin. I see Ezetimibe has been approved since 2002 so would have thought any potential link would have been made by now?
Hi sorry to hear you're having problems with statin replacement I've been taking ezetimibe for several years with no apparent side effects possibly worth giving it a try
I was on Ezetimibe for a couple of years after not being able to tolerate Atorvastatin, Simvastatin or Pravastatin. Tests later showed that in my case it had zero effect on my cholesterol. Eventually I was persuaded to try Rosuvastatin and after a short bedding in period, this was found to lower my cholesterol. The figures weren't great - 4.4 with no medication, 3.7 with Rosuvastatin rising a bit after its effectiveness reduced, but as a well known supermarket says, every little helps.
It will be interesting to see whether Ezetimibe on its own reduces your cholesterol. We are all different, so it might.
I’m not sure either. It was rosuvastatin that caused the muscle wastage even though I’ve been led to understand it’s one of the better ones. I am worried about high cholesterol and try to eat well. Doctor has spoken about injection form of keeping cholesterol under control, it lasts 3 months I understand. What if that doesn’t agree with me ? Have I got to feel unwell until it wears off. I’m not alone I know.
I’ll post the results of estemibe on its own when I have next blood test.
My understanding is that Ezetimibe works with a statin to increase its potency. So you can have a low dose statin plus Ezetimibe and get the same effect as a higher dose statin.
My GP seemed confused and I am pretty sure he was grasping at straws not knowing exactly what Ezetimibe does on its own. However, he has for many year considered me to be a nightmare to medicate... his words, not mine! Nowadays I get on better with practice pharmacist. When I had my bypass op, Ezetimibe wasn't taken off my list of meds, while they did adjust other elements of my prescription.
If you get offered the injection, then all I can say is try it. You won't know how you are with it unless you try it. It could go on your "medication blacklist", it might not. There's plenty on mine! 😯
I cannot tolerate statins and was told that I needed to try Ezetimibe before I would meet the criteria for Inclisiran. The doctor said it was unlikely to have any significant impact on its own. After three months my cholesterol had dropped by about a third. This was not enough and I now have Inclisiran as well, but Ezetimibe on its own certainly did correlate with a significant cholesterol reduction in my case.
That's interesting. My GP did once say that my body probably had difficulty in processing some medications. Ezetimibe had no effect... my cholesterol didn't waver over the years that took it. Thankfully Rosuvastatin made some impact. A result, but even so, not an amazing one.
I’m on inclisiran as I couldn’t stand being on the other statins as the cramp was unbelievably unbearable & I am intolerant to lactose so I was constantly being sick . The inclisiran has brought my cholesterol down considerably & I would suggest you try checking to see if you are blearyeyed would be better off on that
I've just been put on Nustendi, which is Bempedoic Acid plus a relatively small dose of Ezetimibe. Its headline side-effect is possible Gout, but the leaflet has a list of almost every adverse side-effect you can imagine. Hopefully, most of the list is just the manufacturers covering their a***s.
The bottom-line with all medicines is they are not good for your body, but they think the condition they're aimed at is worse. The problem is, unless you are lucky enough to deal with a doctor who is paying attention, you can end up taking more medicines to counter the effects of the ones you've been given.
Absolutely spot on. I was prescribed a PPI to protect my stomach and it made me extremely unwell. Why my GP thought I needed it to provide protection against a blood pressure medication (at the time it was Ramipril), I'll never know. 😕
Hi , me too. Tried 4 statins , dissolved muscles. Tried Ezitimibe twice, upset gut. Reading of 6.8. Now trying to lose weight and do low fat. Do hope it works for you. Liz
Ever since I Googled "Achilles Heel", You Tube has been presenting me with videos suggesting Statins are known to be dangerous. One that was supposed to be defending their use could only come up with the statement that they worked if taken when you have a healthy diet and lifestyle but not if you don't. Rather defeats the point of having them.
I know better than to believe "Conspiracy Theories", but I do wish there was a bit more to justify taking them than "we say you should".
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