I got great results from my Simvastatin, far better than expected from
my very low starting dosage of 10 mg. I was a happy camper for years on
it, especially every several months when new studies kept finding new,
unexpected, beneficial side effects from statins, elevating them to
wonder drug status in the eyes of many. The primary warnings were for
muscle wasting -- rhabdomyolysis -- which occurred in maybe one to two
percent of patients. It can kill, and the liver enzyme (CK) checks
should catch it in time to prevent permanent damage. A few percent of
patients encountered muscle and/or joint pain or weakness not involving
wasting, usually reversible by stopping the drug. I had zero pain or
abnormal weakness, and my CK tests were fine for 7-8 years.

Then one day my elbow "caught fire" with muscle pain. OK, I must have
overdone something; give it a couple of days rest and it will be fine. I
can use my other arm to flip light switches for a day or three.

Then the pain expanded into the joint, feeling like bone-on-bone
arthritis, and weeks went by with no relief. Then my abs were hit by
pain, then a thigh. It took me a month to slap my palm against my
forehead and say, "STATINS!". Googled it, saw very credible reasons to
blame the statin, called my VA doc and a civilian doc, and was told to
get off that stuff NOW and rush in for a ÇK test. It cleared me of
rhabdomyolysis, but there is no treatment for the pain because no one
understands the pathology of statin-induced muscle or joint pain. My arm
quit hurting VERY gradually over the next 4-5 months. My abs are
FINALLY 75% better, and I hope they will stop hurting this winter.

A few facts and factoids that have surfaced:
1. My civilian doc had a pt who had zero problems until unbearable joint
pain hit suddenly after 12 years on statins. They believe it was
statin-induced.
2. That 1-2% figure? Turns out muscle and/or joint pain strike MOST
athletes -- which we should all strive to be if we want to maximize our
longevity and QOL -- who go on statins.
3. Not to mention the memory impacts of statins, ranging from simple
word recall problems to total mental devastation, are much more
prevalent than the drug makers admit and WERE DISCUSSED IN INTERNAL
MEMOS a decade ago. I'll be curious, and probably unqualified to judge,
 whether my obvious mental lapses (e.g., word recall, facts recall)
diminish as my statin experience recedes into history.
4. My VA doc says statins didn't cause my pain, that it was more likely
to be viral. My civilian doc, an internal medicine specialist, is
virtually certain it's statin induced.
5. Cholesterol is fading more every year from its status as a valid
marker of cardiovascular disease (CVD), being replaced by other markers
including those for inflammation . . . and one of statins' primary side
effects is its anti-inflammatory qualities.
6. There's a large, growing, and seemingly credible body of "evidence"
blaming statins for several very serious woes. Problem is, there are
also large bodies of "evidence" to "prove" that milk is inherently
dangerous, aspartame causes cancer, automobile batteries stored on
concrete will discharge, and low-carb (thus high fat & protein) diets
are healthy for normal people. I've studied and rejected the latter
four; I'll dig into the statin damage claims when all my pain is gone
and some doctor wants me back on statins. There's no way in hell I'm
going to risk that amount of pain again (my RRP was a piece of cake by
comparison) unless I can clear statins of blame AND someone convinces me
I have elevated CVD risk; every other known test clears me of CVD.

Would I advise anyone to avoid statins? Not at all. But I surely do warn
them -- especially if they're athletic -- of its increased threats and
of cholesterol's reduced status as a killer all by itself. Half of all
heart attack victims have great cholesterol levels; chol may be just one
marker of other, bigger CVD threats, such as the inflammation Calililly
mentioned recently.

And for an apparently increasing number (as more statin data surfaces)
of ADT pts, maybe statins are yet another ADT SE "cure" some, maybe
many, of us must approach very carefully or even can't tolerate at all.

I.P.

On September29,Leah replied to me, in pertinent part:

(snip)

(snip)

I see that my pontification about cholesterol was misdirected; Leah is
on top of it.

And I appreciate the WoW (Words of Wisdom) about gum disease/chronic
inflammation. I am reminded that I long ago heard somewhere that poor
dental hygiene can have an adverse effect upon general health.

Thanks!

Regards,

Steve J

"You live and learn -- or you don't live long"
--Lazarus Long

I also am curious about the milestone/endpoint you've settled
on Steve J.

I've always believed that it made great sense to think all of
that out and come up with a well considered endpoint.  Then
you don't have to agonize after each PSA test.

But I never came up with one for myself, largely because I was
too lazy to do the research in the absence of a clear need.  My
PSA has gone up from time to time, but it's always been within
possible parameters of PSA bounce, and has, in fact, gone down
again.

   Alan