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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Immunol.
Sec. Cancer Immunity and Immunotherapy
Volume 15 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2024.1439231
This article is part of the Research Topic Community Series in Reducing Adverse Effects of Cancer Immunotherapy: Volume II View all 13 articles

Association Between Statin Use and Immune-Related Adverse Events in Patients Treated with Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors: Analysis of the FAERS Database

Provisionally accepted
HuaJu Yang HuaJu Yang 1Rendong Huang Rendong Huang 2*Ping Zhang Ping Zhang 3*Yingtong Liu Yingtong Liu 4*Zheran Liu Zheran Liu 4Jiagang He Jiagang He 5*Xingchen Peng Xingchen Peng 4*
  • 1 Department of Radiation Oncology, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China
  • 2 Hangzhou Linan Guorui Health Industry Investment Co.,Ltd,, Hangzhou, China
  • 3 Department of Oncology, Chengdu Integrated TCM&Western Medicine Hospital / Chengdu First People’s Hospital, Sichuan, China
  • 4 Department of Biotherapy, Cancer Center, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China
  • 5 Department of Medical Education, Guizhou Moutai Hospital,, Zunyi, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Background: Understanding the risk relationship between statin use and immune-related adverse events (irAEs) in patients undergoing immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) therapy is crucial for optimizing oncological management. Objective: This study aimed to investigate whether the use of statins increases the risk of irAEs in patients receiving ICI therapy. Methods: This study primarily utilized data from FAERS database. Multivariable logistic regression was the principal method of analysis, and the Benjamini-Hochberg procedure was employed to adjust for multiple hypothesis testing. Results: In a group of 145,214 patients undergoing ICI therapy, 9,339 reported using statin medications. Multivariable analysis indicated an increased risk of irAEs among statin users (OR 1.199, 95% CI: 1.141-1.261; FDR p < 0.001) in comparison to those not using statins. Notably, increased risks were observed particularly in patients diagnosed with lung, pancreatic, and renal cancers. The link between statin usage and increased irAEs risk remained consistent across various ICIs treatments. Conclusions: Statin medication usage is linked to an elevated probability of experiencing irAEs in patients enrolled in ICI therapy. In cancer patients receiving immune checkpoint inhibitors, careful consideration of statin use is essential to avoid potentially increased irAEs risk. These findings provide critical guidance for clinicians in developing treatment strategies that balance therapeutic efficacy and safety in oncological management.

    Keywords: Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs), Statins, immune-related adverse events(irAEs), Cancer, Food and Drug Administration Adverse Event Reporting System database (FAERS)

    Received: 27 May 2024; Accepted: 09 Sep 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Yang, Huang, Zhang, Liu, Liu, He and Peng. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence:
    Rendong Huang, Hangzhou Linan Guorui Health Industry Investment Co.,Ltd,, Hangzhou, China
    Ping Zhang, Department of Oncology, Chengdu Integrated TCM&Western Medicine Hospital / Chengdu First People’s Hospital, Sichuan, China
    Yingtong Liu, Department of Biotherapy, Cancer Center, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China
    Jiagang He, Department of Medical Education, Guizhou Moutai Hospital,, Zunyi, China
    Xingchen Peng, Department of Biotherapy, Cancer Center, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.