This Is A Classic
It will be interesting if the study is replicated and the same result shows up, but this is almost to funny for words. Doctors have been warning about high cholesterol levels for years now and recommending ever more stringent treatments to get that serum level down. Right? Sounds all healthy, except for one teeny thing:
Low cholesterol levels appear to be linked to a much higher risk of stomach cancer.
Some studies have linked low cholesterol levels to higher death rates from cancer in general, Dr. Kouichi Asano, of Kyushu University, Fukuoka, and colleagues explain in the International Journal of Cancer. "With respect to gastric cancer, a limited number of studies suggest this inverse association, while others do not."
The researcher looked into this in a study involving some 2,600 residents of Hisayama, Japan, who were followed for 14 years.
Gastric cancers developed in 97 subjects. After accounting for age and gender, stomach cancer rates rose significantly with descending cholesterol level. For example, among subjects with the highest cholesterol levels, the gastric cancer rate was the equivalent of 2.1 cases per 1000 persons per year; among those with the lowest cholesterol, the rate was 3.9 per 1000 person-years.
Yes, I know that, in general, the other diseases caused by or exacerbated by high cholesterol are likely more statistically dangerous. But results like this show that things are always more complicated than the popular, "consensus" opinions would have you believe. Remember, doctors prescribed milk for ulcers for years - probably one of the worst things you can give an ulcer patient.
By Lars Walker, Saturday, 23 February , 2008 @ 8:38 am
Oddly enough, I used to tell people I had a theory that cholesterol prevents cancer, years ago. As usual, I’m embarrassingly right.
By Sam, Saturday, 23 February , 2008 @ 10:57 am
I have been taking statins on my doctor’s advice for the last few years, but am starting to question it based on various articles I have read lately. I didn’t see anywhere in the article whether the increased cancer rate was true both in persons whose cholesterol level is low naturally and those taking statins to lower their level. What I am getting at is that abnormally low cholesterol levels may correlate with stomach cancer rather than cause it. Obviously an area that needs additional study.