High Cholesterol Levels May Impact Your Risk of Certain Cancers: What We Know

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• A new study found that cholesterol may be a key component in cancer cells becoming more resilient and able to metastasize.
• Cancer cells become “stressed” when they try to metastasize and spread from the original cancer site. Often, they die before they can migrate.
• Researchers now say high levels of cholesterol may help cancer cells survive this stressful process.

You may be aware that high levels of “bad” cholesterol have negative health effects, like increasing risk of heart attack and stroke.

But a recent study suggests that high cholesterol levels can also be associated with an increased chance of spreading breast cancer, as well as worse outcomes for many other cancers.

The new study, led by senior author Donald P. McDonnell, PhD, found that cholesterol levels were linked to cancer cells becoming more resilient.

Specifically, the researchers looked at how some cancer cells are able to overcome stressors in the body that would normally result in cell death.