Evidence map›Paper›PMID 30634941›Full record

ArticleBMC cancer2019

Statin use and breast cancer survival - a Swedish nationwide study.

Signe Borgquist, Per Broberg, Jasaman Tojjar, Håkan Olsson

Open access · goldAbstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in BMC cancer, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 46 papers, 9 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
46citing papers in PubMed, 9 pooled it
3.4field-weighted citation impact, top 6% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

46 citing papers in PubMed, 9 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 73 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Statins and prognosis of female breast cancer: a meta-analysis.Clinical & translational oncology : official publication of the Federation of Spanish Oncology Societies and of the National Cancer Institute of Mexico · 2025
    Pooled it
  2. Pooled it
  3. Pooled it
  4. Pooled it
  5. Pooled it
  6. Pooled it
  7. Pooled it
  8. Pooled it
  9. Pooled it
  10. Trial
  11. Article
  12. Review
  13. Observational
  14. Article
  15. Article
  16. Article
  17. Article
  18. Review
  19. Article
  20. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors at 1 institution in 2 countries.

Signe BorgquistDivision of Oncology and Pathology, Department of Clinical Sciences, Barngatan 4, SE-221 85, Lund, Sweden. signe.borgquist@med.lu.se.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7938-8893
Per BrobergDivision of Cancer Epidemiology, Department of Clinical Sciences, Lund University, Lund, Sweden.
Jasaman TojjarDivision of Cancer Epidemiology, Department of Clinical Sciences, Lund University, Lund, Sweden.
Håkan OlssonDivision of Oncology and Pathology, Department of Clinical Sciences, Barngatan 4, SE-221 85, Lund, Sweden.
Lund University · SE

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundA sizeable body of evidence suggests that statins can cease breast cancer progression and prevent breast cancer recurrence. The latest studies have, however, not been supportive of such clinically beneficial effects. These discrepancies may be explained by insufficient power. This considerably sized study investigates the association between both pre- and post-diagnostic statin use and breast cancer outcome.

methodsA Swedish nation-wide retrospective cohort study of 20,559 Swedish women diagnosed with breast cancer (July 1st, 2005 through 2008). Dispensed statin medication was identified through the Swedish Prescription Registry. Breast cancer related death information was obtained from the national cause-of-death registry until December 31st, 2012. Cox regression models yielded hazard ratios (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) regarding associations between statin use and breast cancer-specific and overall mortality.

resultsDuring a median follow-up time of 61.6 months, a total of 4678 patients died, of which 2669 were considered breast cancer related deaths. Compared to non- or irregular use, regular pre-diagnostic statin use was associated with lower risk of breast cancer related deaths (HR = 0.77; 95% CI 0.63-0.95, P = 0.014). Similarly, post-diagnostic statin use compared to non-use was associated with lower risk of breast cancer related deaths (HR = 0.83; 95% CI 0.75-0.93, P = 0.001).

conclusionThis study supports the notion that statin use is protective regarding breast cancer related mortality in agreement with previous Scandinavian studies, although less so with studies in other populations. These disparities should be further investigated to pave the way for future randomized clinical trials investigating the role of statins in breast cancer.

Indexed as

Breast NeoplasmsCause of DeathFemaleHumansHydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA Reductase InhibitorsNeoplasm StagingPopulation SurveillanceProportional Hazards ModelsRegistriesRisk FactorsSwedenHydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA Reductase InhibitorsBreast cancerPrognosisStatinSurvival

Identifiers

PMID30634941
PMCPMC6330431
OpenAlexW2805483928

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.