Low cholesterol 'link' to cancer

" People who significantly cut their cholesterol levels with statins may raise the risk of cancer, a study says.

The study of 40,000 people found those with little of the "bad" cholesterol LDL saw one more cancer case per 1,000 than those with higher levels.*

The Boston-based researchers could not say if this was a side-effect of the statin or due to the low cholesterol.

They also write in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology that the benefits of statins outweigh the risks.

"The analysis doesn't implicate the statin in increasing the risk of cancer," says lead author Richard Karas of Tufts University School of Medicine in Boston. "The demonstrated benefits of statins in lowering the risk of heart disease remain clear.

"However certain aspects of lowering LDL with statins remain controversial and merit further research."

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*Sure it's a totally insignificant number -- we just couldn't resist the clarion call of the newsroom: "Hi -- here's something new to be afraid of."

But the BBC?
Shame.