BETTER THAN STATINS?
ANCHOR LEAD: A NEW DRUG THAT MIMICS A THYROID HORMONE MAY HELP IN LOWERING CHOLESTEROL, ELIZABETH TRACEY REPORTS
Statin medications are the most widely prescribed drugs for lowering cholesterol and reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease as a result. Now a drug called eprotirome studied at Johns Hopkins has proven to be as effective as doubling the dose of a statin medication in dropping cholesterol levels. Paul Ladenson, study leader, describes the results.
LADENSON: The importance of this work on eprotIrome is that it represents a proof of concept that a liver targeted thyroid hormone analog is highly effective at lowering cholesterol. The second important message from this study is that one can develop a thyroid hormone analog that spares the heart, the skeleton and the pituitary gland from excessive thyroid hormone action. :28
Ladenson says for folks who can’t take statin medications or who simply don’t respond, once approved by the FDA, eprotirome may help. At Johns Hopkins, I’m Elizabeth Tracey.
