Potential of Cholesterol-Lowering Drugs as a New Treatment for Liver Cancer

A recent study conducted by researchers at the University of Hong Kong's LKS Faculty of Medicine has uncovered promising evidence that atorvastatin, a commonly used medication for managing high cholesterol, may have a powerful role in treating liver cancer. The team’s findings suggest that this well-known drug could be repurposed to enhance current therapies and improve patient outcomes.

Liver cancer remains one of the most lethal cancers worldwide, often diagnosed in advanced stages where surgical options are limited. Treatments such as targeted drugs and immunotherapy currently offer only temporary benefits for many patients. Particularly for those with fatty liver disease-related cancer, prognosis is often grim due to limited effective options.

The study revealed that atorvastatin can directly inhibit liver cancer cell growth by targeting the mevalonate pathway—a critical metabolic route these cancer cells rely on for survival. This pathway is especially active in cancers linked to fatty liver disease, which is frequently caused by high-fat diets. By blocking this pathway, atorvastatin effectively strips cancer cells of a key defense mechanism, encouraging cellular death.

Additionally, the research demonstrated that combining atorvastatin with existing liver cancer treatments significantly amplifies their effectiveness. When used alongside immunotherapies like anti-PD-1 or targeted therapies like lenvatinib, the drug improved tumor suppression, shrinking tumors by up to 58% in experimental models. These findings could be groundbreaking, especially considering the affordability, safety, and widespread use of atorvastatin.

Professor Carmen Wong Chak-Lui emphasized the significance of this discovery, noting that liver cancer cells employ various escape strategies to survive. Targeting the mevalonate pathway with atorvastatin could undermine these survival tactics and enhance the efficacy of treatment options.

The research team plans to advance their work into clinical trials, aiming to validate these results in human patients. If successful, this could pave the way for a new, accessible, and cost-effective approach to combat advanced liver cancer—offering renewed hope for patients worldwide.

This innovative strategy exemplifies drug repurposing, transforming a familiar medication into a novel therapeutic agent for one of the most challenging cancers. Source: https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-09-cholesterol-medication-potential-treatment-liver.html