Inegy, a drug used to treat high cholesterol could cause cancer, doctors warned last night.
Heart experts called for caution over the use of Inegy, which is taken as a daily pill.
At least one leading specialist said he would not take the drug, while others said the jury was still out.
The U.S. has ordered an investigation into Inegy, which combines the widely used statin drug simvastatin with a new medication called ezetimibe.
While statins block cholesterol in the liver, ezetimibe blocks the absorption of cholesterol in the gut.
In Britain, about 300,000 NHS prescriptions have been dispensed for Inegy in the last two years. Other patients use ezetimibe on its own.
NICE, the NHS ‘rationing’ body, last November approved wider use of ezetimibe for the treatment of hypercholesterolaemia, a condition leading to high concentrations of cholesterol in the blood.
Results from a controversial study published yesterday in the New England Journal of Medicine show a higher than expected number of cancer cases reported among patients taking Inegy.
It showed a total of 105 cancer cases among Inegy patients compared with 70 taking a placebo. That was an increase on the preliminary rates of 93 and 65 respectively reported in July.
The trial found no benefit of the drug in reducing aortic disease in patients with a partially blocked heart valve, and little effect on cardiovascular events such as heart attacks.
According to the Daily Mail.