Ye X, et al. - Researchers determined the associations between statin use and risk of non-Hodgkin lymphomas by subtype in this population-based nested case–control study involving 5541 non-Hodgkin lymphomas (NHL) cases and 27,315 controls matched for gender, age, place of residence and length of period of available prescription drug data. They found evidence demonstrating that the risk of diffuse large B-cell lymphomas and plasma cell lymphomas, but not other NHL types, can be attenuated by using statins.

Methods

• Before diagnosis (excluding the 12 months prior to the index date), the use of statins was assessed.
• Conditional logistic regression models adjusting for medical conditions, number of family physician visits for 5 years prior to index date, healthcare utilization, income and use of other medications were used to estimate odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) for use of any statin.

Results

• Data showed statins were prescribed for over one-quarter of cases and controls.
• Researchers found that ever-use of any statin was associated with lower risk of Total NHL (OR = 0.82, 95% CI 0.76–0.89) and of certain subtypes including diffuse large B-cell lymphomas (DLBCL, OR = 0.77, 95% CI 0.65–0.92), plasma cell neoplasms (PCN, OR = 0.76, 95% CI 0.63–0.91) and other B-cell NHL (0.75, 0.59–0.95).
• They also noted that the link was limited to high potency statin and lipophilic statin users, as revealed in analysis by statin type.
• Findings demonstrated no clear duration or dose–response associations.