Low Dose Aspirin Use May Be a Boon in Cancer Treatment

It's been common knowledge that taking an aspirin a day reduces your chance for a heart attack, but now the lowly painkiller has even bigger bragging rights. A new study shows that people with cancers of the colon, breast or prostate may have better survival odds if they use low-dose aspirin.

Colon cancer sufferers were the big movers: they were about one-quarter less likely to die of the disease, versus non-aspirin-users. Death rates from prostate and breast cancers also tended to be lower among aspirin users, although the connection was weaker.

The findings are based mostly on so-called observational studies. That means researchers tracked the outcomes of cancer patients who happened to use low-dose aspirin – usually considered 81 milligrams – and those who did not. Experts stressed that the study does not prove aspirin can help treat the cancers.

Daily aspirin use has its own risks, however. Gastrointestinal bleeding can be a side effect, and it could potentially interact with some cancer drugs.

Dr. Peter Elwood, the lead researcher on the review, agreed that cancer patients should be aware of aspirin's potential risks. But he also emphasized the potential benefits, even though the evidence is not yet definitive.

"We hold strongly that it is the right of patients to be given the evidence on risks and benefits, and to be encouraged to make up their own mind about prevention, and about treatment," said Elwood, an honorary professor at Cardiff University in Wales.

In fact, pending recommendations from the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force say that certain adults in their 50s and 60s may want to consider taking a daily low-dose aspirin to reduce their risk of colon cancer.