Atorvastatin: good for the heart during therapy with anthracyclines

A new study shows atorvastatin improves cardiovascular outcomes with anthracycline administration. 300 patients with lymphoma were recruited.

Effects of atorvastatin in anthracycline therapy

The study was based on a double-blind randomisation of 300 patients with lymphoma.
One arm received 40 mg atorvastatin/day, while the other group took a placebo.
After 12 months, there were significantly fewer cases of reduced left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) in the atorvastatin group than in the placebo group.

The heart suffers during chemotherapy

It is not uncommon for chemotherapy to have cardiovascular side effects. This also applies to anthracyclines. These drugs are frequently used in oncology and there is therefore a large group of patients who may suffer from undesirable side effects. It has been discussed for some time whether atorvastatin can protect cardiac function during anthracycline therapy. A recent study has investigated this question.

To this end, 300 patients with lymphoma who were being treated with anthracyclines were recruited and randomised in a double-blind fashion. One group received 40 mg atorvastatin per day, while the other group took a placebo. After an observation period of 12 months, the participants' LVEF was measured.

What effect does atorvastatin have on LVEF?

The result showed significant reductions in LVEF and cardiac dysfunction were significantly less frequent in the atorvastatin group. The data show that atorvastatin can have a cardioprotective effect with concomitant therapy with anthracyclines. Therapy with the statin could therefore be useful, especially in the case of a high risk profile.

Source

Neilan TG, Quinaglia T, Onoue T, Mahmood SS, Drobni ZD, Gilman HK, Smith A, Heemelaar JC, Brahmbhatt P, Ho JS, Sama S, Svoboda J, Neuberg DS, Abramson JS, Hochberg EP, Barnes JA, Armand P, Jacobsen ED, Jacobson CA, Kim AI, Soumerai JD, Han Y, Friedman RS, Lacasce AS, Ky B, Landsburg D, Nasta S, Kwong RY, Jerosch-Herold M, Redd RA, Hua L, Januzzi JL, Asnani A, Mousavi N, Scherrer-Crosbie M. Atorvastatin for Anthracycline-Associated Cardiac Dysfunction: The STOP-CA Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA. 2023 Aug 8;330(6):528-536.