People who take aspirin regularly have a significantly lower risk of cancer, particularly involving the colon and gastrointestinal tract, according to US research published on Thursday.
The findings in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) Oncology suggest that aspirin use should complement -- not replace -- already established preventive screening measures such as colonoscopies.
"We now can recommend that many individuals consider taking aspirin to reduce their risk of colorectal cancer -- particularly those with other reasons for regular use, such as heart disease prevention," said senior author Andrew Chan of the Massachusetts General Hospital.
Regular Aspirin use carries some health risks but can reduce the risk of colorectal and gastrointestinal cancers, a study shows ©Tim Boyle (Getty/AFP/File)
"Our findings imply that aspirin use would be expected to prevent a significant number of colorectal cancers above and beyond those that would be prevented by screening and may have even greater benefit in settings in which the resources to devote to cancer screening are lacking."
Previous research has shown that regular aspirin use can help prevent colorectal cancer.
However, the wider effect of aspirin on all cancers was less clear.
So the researchers looked at 32 years worth of data from nearly 136,000 nurses and health professionals who answered health surveys.
People who took either a regular aspirin or a low-dose aspirin at least twice per week showed a three percent lower risk of any type of cancer than those who did not report regular aspirin use.
The protective benefit of aspirin "appeared after five years of continuous use at dosages ranging from 0.5 to 1.5 standard tablets a week or one low-dose tablet a day," said the study.
Aspirin use reduced the risk of colorectal cancer by 19 percent and the risk of any gastrointestinal cancer by 15 percent.
Regular aspirin use "could prevent close to 30,000 gastrointestinal tract tumors in the US each year," said the study.
The team also calculated that aspirin use could "prevent an additional 7,500 colorectal tumors among US adults over 50 who have endoscopic screening and 9,800 among the almost 30 million who are not screened."
However, when researchers looked specifically at common cancers such as breast, lung and prostate cancer, they found no risk reduction from aspirin use.
The research was based on observational studies, so it is not as strong as a randomized controlled trial.
Aspirin also carries certain risks, such as bleeding and stroke, and cannot be tolerated by everyone.
The US Preventive Services Task Force recommends aspirin to prevent colorectal cancer and cardiovascular disease among many US adults.
According to Ernest Hawk of the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, the study "is important because it suggests that aspirin use may complement colorectal cancer screening," he wrote in an accompanying editorial.
Aspirin also "may have an absolute benefit regardless" of whether patients have been screened by traditional methods, "a critical insight that few other studies have provided thus far," added Hawk, who was not involved in the study.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/afp/article-3475115/Aspirin-lowers-risk-cancer-study.html
Aspirin Could Reduce The Risk of Certain Cancers, Study Shows
A small daily dose may prevent colon and gastrointestinal tumors.
Aspirin has long been prescribed for heart health. "People who have had a heart attack or stroke are usually prescribed aspirin unless there is a good reason not to, such as a recent history of stomach ulcers," says Eric Jacobs, PhD, the American Cancer Society's strategic director for pharmacoepidemiology.
But now a study published March 3 in the journal JAMA Oncology finds that taking low-dose aspirin on a daily basis may lower the overall risk of cancer by three percent. Researchers saw the largest reductions in the risk for colon and gastrointestinal tumors.
Aspirin, however, was not associated with a lower risk for other major cancers, such as breast, prostate or lung cancer, according to the study.
"There is scientific evidence that aspirin has an effect on certain biological pathways that can result in cancer," said senior researcher Andrew Chan, MD, of Boston's Massachusetts General Hospital. It also reduces inflammation and the amount of some cancer-causing proteins.
While the benefit was only seen after six years of popping the OTC pill, study authors are optimistic: "Cancers don't typically develop overnight. They take years to develop, so you would have to take aspirin for a long time to prevent cancer," said Dr. Chan.
Dr. Chan also cautioned that this study shows only that taking aspirin is associated with a reduction in the risk of cancer, not that it prevents the disease. "The evidence has reached the point that it may be useful to consider using aspirin to prevent colon cancer," he said. "But we are still not at a point where the general population should take aspirin for cancer prevention."
Ernest Hawk, MD, vice president of the division of cancer prevention and population sciences at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, and co-author of an editorial that accompanied the research, said the study suggests "reductions in gastrointestinal and colon cancers among people who take aspirin for other reasons, such as reducing the risk of heart attacks or treating arthritis and relieving pain."
ACS's Jacobs adds: Aspirin is not a substitute for getting screened for colon cancer. "All Americans 50 or older should talk to their doctor about getting tested for colon cancer so that polyps can be detected and removed before they get a chance to develop into cancer."
Bottom line: Taking aspirin regularly might prevent 17 percent of colon cancers among those who are not screened with colonoscopy and 8.5 percent of colon cancers among those who are, according to research.
What does this mean for you and me? Jacobs advises people to talk to their physician first. The doctor will be able to take into account the patient's risk for heart disease, as well as reasons why regular aspirin use might not be right for them.
