Aspirin has been around for thousands of years, and its benefits continue to amaze.
The over-the-counter medicine, which has been available for over 100 years at local pharmacies, is typically taken for pain relief, such as headaches, or even to reduce swelling. Some caution should be exercised, however, as it has been linked with Reye’s syndrome in children or teenagers who have the flu or chickenpox.
It’s well known that aspirin can work as a blood thinner. It’s also proven successful at helping to reduce the risk of cardiovascular events in people at risk. A doctor should be consulted for either of these uses, however.
Doctors may also have their patients take aspirin after a cardiovascular event or stroke in order to prevent any more clots from forming, as well as tissue death.
A new study from Mass General Brigham researchers found that regular aspirin use was associated with a reduction in colorectal cancer, the third most common cancer in the world and fourth most common cancer in the U.S. Approximately 152,810 people in the U.S. will be diagnosed with colon cancer this year, and 53,010 will die from the disease, according to the American Cancer Society.
The New York Post reports on the findings from the Mass General Brigham study. Here’s the start of the story:
Just two aspirin a week may help reduce the risk of colorectal cancer in adults living unhealthy lifestyles, new research from Mass General Brigham finds.
Nearly 108,000 health professionals were included in the study — most were around 50 years old.
Researchers recorded their aspirin intake and assigned them a lifestyle score based on their body mass index, alcohol consumption, physical activity, diet and tendency to smoke cigarettes.
Regular aspirin use was defined as two or more standard tablets (325 milligrams each) or at least six low-dose pills (81 milligrams each) per week.
Participants were followed for more than three decades, with researchers documenting about 2,500 cases of colorectal cancer.
They determined that those with unhealthier lifestyles — especially if they were overweight or heavy smokers — enjoyed the greatest benefit from aspirin use compared with their healthier peers.
The unhealthy participants had a 3.4% chance of getting colorectal cancer if they did not regularly take aspirin versus a 2.1% chance if they did.