Simvastatin and Its Role in Anti-Inflammation and Cancer Therapy: A Review

Abstract

3-Hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme, a reductase inhibitors (statins) are widely used drugs  to reduce lipid levels by inhibiting cholesterol biosynthesis. Simvastatin, a lipophilic statin is one of the most frequently prescribed statin drugs throughout the world due to profound reductions in LDL-C with excellent tolerability, with very little risk of important adverse effects, to a lower extent. It also reduce triglycerides and increase high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels. Beside  this, studies on simvastatin have shown to exhibit numerous pleiotropic effects, has beneficial effect on endothelial function, smooth muscle cell function, haemostasis, vascular wall function, LDL oxidation, kidney diseases, inflammation and anticarcinogenic effects on many types of cancer including prostate, breast hepatic and colon carcinoma. In this review, we present an overview of simvastatin and its relevance in anti-inflammation and cancer management.