Benefits of Long Term Use of Aspirin

Previous study has connected long-term aspirin use leads adverse side effects, like as internal bleeding. But with respect to a new research, the advantages of long term aspirin treatment outweigh such adverse side effects; it can considerably decrease the risk of major cancers of the digestive tract, such as stomach, esophageal, and bowel cancers.

The study team, lead by Prof. Jack Cuzick, head of the Centre for Cancer Prevention at the Queen Mary University, recently presented their outcomes in the journal Annals of Oncology.

Aspirin, also recognized as acetlylsalicylic acid (ASA), is a salicylate drug generally used to decrease inflammation, fever and minor aches and pains. In long-term low doses, the medicine is also utilized as an antiplatelet for sufferers at high threat of heart attack and stroke.

There has been much discussion around the advantages of long standing aspirin treatment. Earlier research have recommended it can decrease threat of ovarian cancer and enhance colon cancer survival, while others state it can lead to harm, with one study indicating it raises the risk of age-associated macular degeneration.

In this newest research, Prof. Cuzick and his crew set out to figure out whether the health advantages of long term aspirin use outweigh the risks.

Taking everyday aspirin ‘essential for decreasing cancer risk’

To reach their results, the team performed an analysis of all accessible proof from an array of scientific studies searching at the advantageous and dangerous effects of aspirin use.

The scientists approximated that if people aged 50-65 took a everyday 80-100 mg dose of aspirin for 5-10 years, the number of bowel cancer situations could be decreased by 35% and deaths by 40%, while rates of stomach and esophageal cancers can be cut by 30% and deaths by 35-50%.

Overall, they calculate that regular aspirin use for 5-10 years could offer a 9% decrease in the number of cancers, heart attacks and strokes in men, and a 7% decrease in women. Over a 20-year interval, they calculate the number of deaths from all reasons could be decreased by 4%. No advantages were found till individuals used aspirin for at least 3 years.

But the scientists note that long term aspirin use does raise the risk of bleeding in the digestive tract. They discovered that people older 60 who took aspirin regular for 10 years enhanced their threat of gastrointestinal bleeding by 1.3%, from 2.1% to 3.4%. However, they notice that this is only probably to be life-threatening in about 5% of individuals.

“The threat of bleeding relies upon a number of identified factors which individuals require to be aware of prior to beginning regular aspirin, and it would be recommended to contact a physician before starting on regular medication,” notes Prof. Cuzick.

In inclusion, they discovered that long term aspirin use enhanced the threat of peptic ulcer by 30-60%.

But regardless of these side effects, Prof. Cuzick considers that long-term aspirin treatment could be important to cancer prevention:

“It has long been recognized that aspirin – one of the most affordable and most common medication on the market – can defend against specific types of cancer. But till our study, where we examined all the accessible proof, it was not clear whether the benefits of taking aspirin outweighed the drawbacks.

While there are some severe side effects that cannot be ignored, taking aspirin regular seems to be the very significant thing we can do to reduce cancer after stopping smoking and decreasing obesity, and will most likely be much easier to implement.”

The team notices that additional study is warranted to much better pinpoint those who are most probably to advantage from long-term aspirin use and who are at highest threat of gastrointestinal bleeding.