'Good' cholesterol may lower a cancer risk

Published: Nov. 4, 2009 at 3:43 PM

BALTIMORE, Nov. 4 (UPI) -- Men with low cholesterol are less likely to get high-grade prostate cancer, a U.S. researcher says.

The study, published in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, found a link between low cholesterol and decreased risk of high-grade prostate cancer among 5,586 men older than age 55.

"High-grade prostate cancer is less common than prostate cancer overall, but it is a subset of prostate cancer that is more likely to progress," study leader Elizabeth Platz of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore said in a statement.

The researchers found men with a total cholesterol of less than 200 milligrams per decilitre had a 59 percent reduced risk of high-grade prostate cancer.

No association was seen for prostate cancer overall or for prostate cancer with a lower Gleason score. The Gleason score, given to prostate cancer based upon its microscopic appearance, is part of a system used to help evaluate prognosis. Higher Gleason scores are more aggressive cancers and have a worse prognosis.

© 2009 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Order reprints



Additional News Stories
Watercooler Stories (21 min)
Jockstrip: The world as we know it. (51 min)
Your Daily Horoscope
The almanac
Average features key to female face beauty
Want to avoid H1N1? -- fly first class
NBA: Portland 105, Phoenix 102
fark
Say "HO" again. Say "HO" again, I dare you, I DOUBLE-dare you, motherfarker. Say "HO" one more gotdamn...
Truck hauling 4000 cases of beer ran off the road in Papua, New Guinea. Since this is Fark, you...
Tree Man's infamous wooden growths are returning to his body. Knot again
Fugitive doctor tries to avoid capture by performing impromtu surgery on own neck
Photoshop theme: Rejected Christmas cards
Australian hottie swimmer Stephanie Rice wants a new boyfriend for Christmas. Any Farkers wanna...