Side Effect: High Cholesterol (hyperlipidemia)

What is High Cholesterol (hyperlipidemia)?

Elevated cholesterol, also known as hyperlipidemia refers to high levels of lipids or fat in a patient’s blood. This can lead to a buildup of cholesterol in the arteries (a type of blood vessel), causing an increased risk of developing a heart attack or a stroke.

What does High Cholesterol (hyperlipidemia) look like?

High cholesterol often does not present with symptoms, and many patients might not know they have it. However, it can increase the risk of developing heart disease. Once heart disease occurs, patients may experience:

• chest pain
• shortness of breath
• heart palpitations

Who gets High Cholesterol (hyperlipidemia)?

Patients with cancer can develop high cholesterol for a variety of reasons, including cancer treatment.

• Chemotherapy can induce dyslipidemia, a condition that leads to elevated cholesterol.
• Other causes of high cholesterol include:
  • Unbalanced diet
  • immobility from cancer treatments
  • hormonal therapies

How long does High Cholesterol last?

• High cholesterol can last a patient’s entire life once diagnosed, however dietary modifications and an in increase in physical exercise may help it to go away without medications
  • Healthcare providers will monitor cholesterol labs and make adjustments as necessary.
• If lifestyle modifications are ineffective, high cholesterol may be managed with medications, which can be adjusted if the cholesterol values return to normal level.

How to prevent High Cholesterol (hyperlipidemia)

To prevent high cholesterol in patients with cancer, risk factors need to be appropriately managed.

Risk factors include:

• obesity
• sedentary lifestyle (little physical activity)
• smoking
• diet high in trans and saturated fats

Healthcare providers may draw labs (blood tests) on patients with cancer before, during, or after treatment to determine if cholesterol levels are high.

These labs will include cholesterol numbers and will be monitored for any change in lipid levels.

How to treat High Cholesterol (hyperlipidemia)

High cholesterol can be categorized into mild or severe cases.

• In mild cases, lifestyle modifications such as dietary changes, exercise, and weight loss may be sufficient to return cholesterol levels to the normal range.
  • However, in patients with cancer this can be challenging, especially while enduring chemotherapy.
• In more severe cases, medications can be started. Below are a few examples of medications that can help lower cholesterol:
• Ezetimibe (Zetia®)
• Fibrates
  • Clofibrate (Atromid-S®)
  • Fenofibrate (TriCor®, Fibricor®, Lofibra®)
  • Gemfibrozil (Lopid®)
• Statins
  • Atorvastatin (Lipitor)
  • Fluvastin (Lescol XL)
  • Lovastatin (Altoprev)
  • Pitavastatin (Livalo)
  • Pravastatin
  • Rosuvastatin (Crestor)
  • Simvastatin (Zocor)
• Omega-3 fatty acid supplements