Outcomes trials
A hospital pharmacy bulletin sums up CETP inhibitors for practising pharmacists: three failures, then a REVEAL success for anacetrapib (Hosp Pharm 2017)
Original title: Cholesterol Ester Transfer Protein Inhibitor Review
A brief review aimed at hospital pharmacists explains CETP inhibitors as a strategy to address residual atherosclerotic cardiovascular risk beyond statin therapy, by raising HDL cholesterol and lowering LDL cholesterol. It notes that initial large-scale trials of CETP inhibitors showed no reduction in cardiovascular events, but that anacetrapib demonstrated a reduction in cardiovascular events in the REVEAL trial. A short, general-audience summary rather than a detailed technical review.
Original abstract
Treatment of blood cholesterol is part of a strategy to lower atherosclerotic cardiovascular (ASCVD) risk. While use of HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors to modify cholesterol levels is the primary means of lowering the risk of an ASCVD event, residual risk remains. A new strategy being investigated is the use of cholesterol ester transfer protein (CETP) inhibitors to raise the levels of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) and lower low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C). While initial large-scale studies demonstrated no reduction of cardiovascular events, one CETP inhibitor, anacetrapib, has demonstrated a reduction in cardiovascular events in the REVEAL trial.
Summary written by cetpinhibition.org from the published abstract; figures as published. Page updated 18 August 2026. Methods.