A new study in JAMA shows that taking aspirin on a regular basis can help reduce the risk of dying of colon cancer:
The improvements in outcomes were striking. Patients with colorectal cancer who regularly used aspirin before and after a diagnosis were almost one-third less likely to die of the disease than non-users. Patients who initiated aspirin use only after a diagnosis did even better and had half the risk of dying from the cancer, possibly because of differences in their tumors. The patients were all being treated for nonmetastatic, or localized, cancers, and were followed for almost 12 years on average.
Unfortunately, I have an elevated risk of this type of cancer, so any news of this nature is good news. The first thing that came to mind on this is whether people with certain risk factors (inflammatory bowel disease, family history, history of polyps, and so on) might ever consider a daily regimen of low-dose aspirin, similar to what is sometimes recommended for people at risk for heart attack and stroke.
Of course, the doctors in the study make no such recommendations, and besides, aspirin can actually irritate the stomach and can cause ulcers or internal bleeding, which I would imagine to be very bad for someone with Crohn’s or ulcerative colitis. Nonetheless, it’s a promising study, and will hopefully lead to additional research into potential treatments for colon cancer.
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