Better Prostate Cancer Survival for Men Taki...(y's call for a tightly monitored clinica...),Health

As it is, many men diagnosed with prostate cancer are already taking statins, and there is no reason for them to stop, Horwitz said. "This report is reassuring because of the overlap," he noted.

Two recent reports have linked statin use with a lower risk of developing prostate cancer. One study, from the University of Alabama, Birmingham, found a decline in prostate cancer death rates that was most notable among white men who used statins.

Another study, from Duke University Medical Center, found lower blood levels of prostate-specific antigen, a potential marker of the cancer, among men taking statins.

A study on statin use in prostate cancer prevention or treatment should center on men at higher risk, Zelefsky said -- "Older men with a family history."

There is "no significant downside" to statin use in such studies because the drugs have a low rate of adverse side effects, he said.

More information

For more on prostate cancer, visit the U.S. National Cancer Institute.

SOURCES: Michael J. Zelefsky, M.D., professor, radiation oncology, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York City; Eric Horwitz, M.D., clinical director, radiation oncology, Fox Chase Cancer Center, Philadelphia; Oct. 31, 2007, presentation, American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology annual meeting, Los Angeles