Can Cholesterol-Lowering Drugs Treat Cancer? Indian Scientists Begin Tests After Positive Mice Data
Anecdotal and epidemiological evidence has also suggested that people taking statins regularly may have a lower risk of developing solid tumours such as colorectal or breast cancer
Cholesterol-lowering statins, long trusted to protect hearts, may soon find a new role in cancer care — this time, as a potential ally in shrinking tumours.
A team led by Dr Sanjeev Galande, dean of the School of Natural Sciences at Shiv Nadar University and one of India's leading cell biologists and epigeneticists, is repurposing statins to treat colorectal, breast and other solid cancers. In collaboration with the Tata Memorial Centre, a multi-phase clinical trial involving 350 patients is underway to evaluate the drug's cancer-fighting potential.
The ongoing trial, which bypassed early-stage studies due to strong pre-clinical evidence, is comparing two groups: one receiving standard therapy (chemotherapy plus radiation), and another receiving statins as part of the regimen. Patient recruitment began in 2022, with results expected to be submitted for publication in the next few months.
'Our pre-clinical studies in animal models were promising. We induced tumour formation in mice and treated them with statins. Not only did the visible tumour lumps begin regressing, but molecular and cellular studies confirmed that statins reversed the tumorigenic process," Galande told News18. 'These drugs altered the molecular signature of cancer cells—switching off proteins that drive tumour growth and pushing cells back toward a normal state."
The findings in mice, published in Oncotarget medical journal on Tuesday, showed how statins affected gene and protein expression in tumours, with data derived from dissected tissues and molecular assays. The samples were collected from patients via colonoscopy and flash-frozen in liquid nitrogen before undergoing analysis.
'Importantly, anecdotal and epidemiological evidence has also suggested that people taking statins regularly may have a lower risk of developing solid tumours such as colorectal or breast cancer — though the effect does not appear to extend to blood cancers like leukemia, which follow different biological pathways," explained Galande, who is among India's most-decorated molecular biologists and a key 'torch-bearer of Indian bioscience".
According to the trial protocol published on Clinical Trials Registry (CTRI), the success of the study would bring a low-cost, low-risk intervention in the form of statins that could 'potentially lead to the refinement of strategies, such as 'watch and wait', in a select subgroup of patients".
Clinical Trial On Humans Likely To Conclude Soon
Currently, colorectal cancer is the third most common cancer in men and the second in women worldwide. In India, it is the third most common cancer. In India, the annual incidence rates for colon cancer and rectal cancer in men are 4.4 and 4.1 per 100,000, respectively. The standard treatment for locally advanced rectal cancer is chemotherapy and radiation therapy followed by surgery.
Galande's team, backed by funding from the Department of Biotechnology (DBT), believes the implications of this research could extend to cancer prevention. 'Once the study on humans is peer-reviewed and published, statins could be explored as a precautionary treatment for individuals with a hereditary risk of cancer, given their well-established safety profile," he said.
Under the trial, patients are given 20mg rosuvastatin—a popular statin—orally.
The team also plans to investigate whether statins can help prevent metastasis in advanced cancers, particularly in secondary sites like the liver. If successful, this could open new avenues for affordable cancer therapy using an existing, widely available drug.
'The project began in 2019 but was temporarily stalled by the Covid-19 pandemic," Galande said, adding: 'However, the accelerated translation from lab to clinic has put it back on track — and statins may soon graduate from cholesterol management to tumour management."
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