[Chicago Tribune] CHOLESTEROL DRUG MAY BE A LOT MORE: Cancer. Alzheimer's. Diabetes. Osteoporosis. These are just some of the diseases that researchers hope can be treated or prevented with statins....ot since aspirin has a class of drugs come along that does so much more than originally intended that it could end up being used as a preventive against many major diseases.

Statins, which lower cholesterol, have been proved in clinical trials to reduce heart attacks and strokes by 30 to 50 percent. They are the most widely prescribed drugs in the U.S.; 1 in 10 adults take them.

But their full value in improving the nation's health rests with research attempting to establish the ability of statins to prevent cancer, Alzheimer's disease, diabetes, osteoporosis, high blood pressure, multiple sclerosis and macular degeneration.