Re: Greying of America will foster new strategies in oncology.

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Abstract
The Journal recently carried a News item (1) on the views concerning cancer in the aging population expressed by President Clinton's Cancer Panel. According to this Panel, the main treatment- related priority in the cancer therapy in an aging population is the requirement for individualization of the treatment and examination of the pharmacologic properties and toxicity of cancer drugs given to older patients. We would like to draw attention to one interesting and promising aspect of the interaction between some chemotherapeutics and statins in tumor therapy. The inhibitors of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl- coenzyme A (HMG-CoA) reductase (the statins) inhibit synthesis of mevalonic acid, an essential precursor in cholesterol biosynthesis, and have commonly been used for the last several years to prevent and to treat atherosclerosis of the coronary vessels. Due to their ability to lower blood cholesterol levels, the statins presently are among the world's most commonly used drugs, especially in elderly patients. The mean age of patients receiving simvastatin in the Scandinavian Simvastatin Survival Study is 58.2 years for men and 60.5 years for women (2).