CETP inhibitors as agents to reduce coronary heart disease risk: after earlier trial failures, REVEAL showed anacetrapib actually works (Cardiol Clin 2018)

Original title: Cholesteryl Ester Transfer Protein Inhibitors as Agents to Reduce Coronary Heart Disease Risk

Cardiol Clin · 16 February 2018 · 5

Barter PJ, Rye KA

A review of CETP, which transfers cholesteryl esters from the non-atherogenic HDL fraction to potentially proatherogenic non-HDL fractions. Inhibiting CETP lowers non-HDL cholesterol, improves HDL functionality, and raises HDL cholesterol and apoA-I. Despite the absence of benefit in earlier CETP inhibitor trials, the authors highlight that the REVEAL trial showed treatment with the CETP inhibitor anacetrapib reduces the risk of a coronary event in high-risk, statin-treated patients, positioning REVEAL as evidence the mechanism can work after a run of earlier disappointments.

Original abstract

Cholesteryl ester transfer protein (CETP) promotes the transfer of cholesteryl esters from the nonatherogenic high density lipoprotein (HDL) fraction to potentially proatherogenic non-HDL fractions. Inhibition of CETP reduces the concentration of non-HDL cholesterol, enhances HDL functionality, and increases the concentration of HDL cholesterol and apoA-I. Despite an absence of benefit in earlier trials of CETP inhibition, the REVEAL trial has shown that treatment with the CETP inhibitor anacetrapib reduces the risk of having a coronary event in high-risk, statin-treated patients.

Summary written by cetpinhibition.org from the published abstract; figures as published. Page updated 18 August 2026. Methods.