Aspirin use for the prevention of cancer:
Aspirin, non-aspirin non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and cancer: In a study by Bardia A et al, regular aspirin use was associated with a lower cancer incidence and cancer mortality, but non-aspirin non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) use was not. The beneficial effects of aspirin were stronger in former and never smokers than current smokers. Among 22,507 cancer-free postmenopausal women age 55-69 who provided information on aspirin and NSAID use, those who said they regularly used aspirin had a 16% reduced risk of developing cancer more than a decade later. There was also a 13% reduced risk of dying from cancer over this same time period, compared to women who did not use aspirin. Aspirin use decreased the risk of mortality from coronary artery disease by 25% and reduced the risk of all-cause mortality by 18%. Ever use of aspirin was associated with a lower risk of cancer than those women who never used aspirin. Aspirin use greater than 6 times per week was compared to aspirin use 2-5 times per week, over 1 time per week, ever use , and never use. The higher the frequency of aspirin use, the lower the incidence of cancer. Also the higher the frequency of aspirin use, the lower the cancer mortality. The women with the lowest all-cause mortality took aspirin 2-5 times per week. There was no statistically significant impact on cancer incidence or mortality among women who used non-aspirin NSAIDs, compared to those who did not. (3)
