In a retrospective cohort study, statin use was found to be associated
with a reduced risk of hepatocellular carcinoma among patients with
hepatitis B virus infection, according to study data.
“We investigated the effect of statin in the
primary prevention of HCC in a hospital-based population of HBV
patients, by correcting for any potential confounders and biases,” the
researchers wrote. “We also examined the effect of statin among other
high-risk subgroups to evaluate the potential clinical use and impact of
statin.”
Researchers extracted and analyzed data of
73,499 patients with HBV from the Hospital Authority registry database,
which contained data of patients from 43 hospitals and 120 clinics in
Hong Kong territory, between January 2000 and December 2012. This data
was retrieved after researchers searched the database looking for
specific ICD-9 codes and hepatitis B surface antigen
(HBsAg) positivity. Of these patients, 53,513 were included in the
final analysis. Researchers found that 1,176 of these patients were
statin users and 52,337 patients were not.
Read more...Labels: HCC risk, protective effect of statins