Can Regular, Long-Term Use of Aspirin Impact Cancer Risk?

Regular, long-term use of aspirin is associated with a moderate but significant reduction in the risk of cancer, particularly colorectal cancer, according to a new study.

Recent recommendations from the US Preventive Services Task Force advised the use of aspirin for the prevention of colorectal cancer and cardiovascular disease, but the association between aspirin use and other cancer types, as well as the overall population-wide effects of aspirin use on cancer are less well understood.
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To further examine this association, researchers examined data from 2 cohort studies including 135,965 individuals who reported daily aspirin use.

Overall, 20,414 cases of cancer among women and 7571 cases among men were reported. Compared with nonregular use, regular aspirin use was associated with lower risk for overall cancer (RR, 0.97) and overall lower risk of colorectal cancer (RR, 0.81).

Benefit of aspirin use was evident with use of at least 0.5 to 1.5 aspirin tablets per week for a minimum of 6 years. Aspirin use was not associated with changes in the risk of breast, prostate, or lung cancers.

“Long-term aspirin use was associated with a modest but significantly reduced risk for overall cancer, especially gastrointestinal tract tumors. Regular aspirin use may prevent a substantial proportion of colorectal cancers and complement the benefits of screening,” they concluded.

—Michael Potts

Reference:

Cao Y, Nishihara R, Wu K, et al. population-wide impact of long-term use of aspirin and the risk for cancer. JAMA Oncol.March 3, 2016 [epub ahead of print]. doi:10.1001/jamaoncol.2015.6396.