Description: WEDNESDAY, Oct. 31 (HealthDay News) -- Men who were taking statins to lower their cholesterol had a 10 percent greater chance of being cured of prostate cancer by radiation therapy 10 years after diagnosis, a new study finds.

It's an "intriguing and very interesting finding," but falls short of supporting statin use for all prostate cancer patients, said study author Dr. Michael J. Zelefsky, a professor of radiation oncology at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York City. He was to deliver the results Wednesday at the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology annual meeting, in Los Angeles.

"But I would encourage men to see their internist and get on the medications if their blood cholesterol warranted it," he said.

Zelefsky reported on 871 men given radiation therapy for prostate cancer between 1995 and 2000. The five-year relapse-free survival rate for the 168 men taking statins was 91 percent while the 10-year survival rate was 76 percent. That com