Low cholesterol and increased cancer in men aged 40-79

This study was published in the American Journal of Epidemiology Vol. 131, No. 3: 468-482

Study title and authors:
CANCER MORTALITY AND LIPID AND LIPOPROTEIN LEVELS. THE LIPID RESEARCH CLINICS PROGRAM MORTALITY FOLLOW-UP STUDY
LINDA D. COWAN, DIANNE L. O'CONNELL, MICHAEL H. CRIQUI, ELIZABETH BARRETT-CONNOR, TRUDY L. BUSH and ROBERT B. WALLACE
Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, College of Public Health, University of Oklahoma

This paper can be accessed at:
http://aje.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/131/3/468?ijkey=c000cef5edeb335818ec2b366636f9c4ae09216d&keytype2=tf_ipsecsha

This study examined the associations of total cholesterol levels and low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levels, with the risk of death from colon cancer in 2,753 men and 2,476 women aged 40-79 over a 8 1/2 year period.

The study found:
(a) Men with the lowest LDL cholesterol (119 mg/dL or 3 mmol/l) (the so called bad cholesterol) had a 379% increased risk of colon cancer compared with men who had higher levels of LDL.
(b) Men with the lowest total cholesterol (187 mg/dL or 4.8 mmol/l) had a 420% increased risk of colon cancer compared to men who had higher cholesterol levels.

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