Observational studies have shown an association between low plasma cholesterol levels and increased risk of cancer, whereas most randomized clinical trials involving cholesterol-lowering medications have not shown this association. Between 1997 and 2002, the authors assessed the association between plasma cholesterol levels and cancer risk, free from confounding and reverse causality, in a Mendelian randomization study using apolipoprotein E genotype.

Effect of dalcetrapib plus pravastatin on lipoprotein metabolism and high-density lipoprotein composition and function in dyslipidemic patients: results of a phase IIb dose-ranging study. Cholesteryl ester transfer protein is involved in high-density lipoprotein remodeling and transfer of lipids between HDL particles and other lipoproteins.