Statin Use and the Risk of Prostate Cancer in Ischemic Heart Disease Patients in Taiwan

Patients with ischemic heart disease (IHD) are more likely to be diagnosed with prostate cancer. Statins, which are widely used in such patients, are shown to modify the risk of prostate cancer. To clarify the association between statin use and the risk of prostate cancer among patients with higher risk of developing prostate cancer in Taiwan, a cohort of 26,628 men with IHD and aged between 55 and 100 were acquired from the National Health Insurance Research Database and followed over a period of 8 years. The risk of prostate cancer was calculated by time-dependent Cox regression model. Statin use was associated with significantly lower risk of both total and advanced prostate cancer (adjusted hazard ratio (HR): 0.719, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.570-0.908; adjusted HR: 0.718, 95% CI: 0.530-0.972 respectively). In Taiwan IHD population, the reduction in risk of prostate cancer was observed in statin users as compared with nonusers.