A new study has found that people who take aspirin on a daily basis have a lower risk of developing colon cancer. However, results may take a while.
A team of researchers from Denmark inform that test subjects who took just one (1) or two (2) baby aspirins each day, for a period of at least five (5) years were 27 percent (27%) less likely to develop colon cancer. What’s more, test subjects who took ibuprofen or some other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug for the same period of time were 30 percent (30%) to 45 percent (45%) less likely to develop colon cancer.
Dr. John Baron, co-author on the study and professor of medicine from the University of North Carolina’s School of Medicine (Chapel Hill), gave a statement saying that “The protective association is certainly amazing, and it’s a good example of how everyday drugs can have unexpected benefits”.
He then went on to add that people should also be aware of some potential risks. He does not think that he and his colleagues “should imply or recommend that these medications be taken for cancer prevention without working closely with a physician”.
Long-term use of these drugs may protect against colon cancer, but they can also lead to the development of gastrointestinal bleeding.
People should also know that interrupting the daily dose of aspirin or non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug cancels most of the protection that these pills offer when they are taken continuously. However, Dr. Baron and his colleagues believe that non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs “may be (marginally) effective” than aspirin when they are not taken continuously.
Earlier studies have also suggested that these drugs may protect against colon cancer, however this is the first study to offer proof of the concept. The research team achieved this by collecting and looking at data from more than 113.000 subjects, both men and women.
It’s import to know that the aspirin’s and the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs’ ability to protect against colon cancer depends on a few factors such as a person’s age, ethnicity, race and general lifestyle. For instance, the National Cancer Institute informs that more than 90 percent (90%) of all colon cancer cases are found in people passed the age of 50.
Online risk calculators provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) also inform that an average white woman or an average black woman living in the US has a 1 percent (1%) to 1.4 percent (1.4%) chance of developing colorectal cancer, for a period of 10 years, when she’s in her late 50s.
However, the same woman’s lifetime risk of developing colorectal cancer is somewhere between 5 percent (5%) and 5.4 percent (5.4%).
As for the reverse, an average white man or an average black man in his late 50s has a 1.4 percent (1.4%) chance of developing colorectal cancer for a period of 10 years, and a 5.8 percent (5.8%) lifetime chance of developing colorectal cancer.
It’s worth mentioning that the research team only looked at patients who received aspiring and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug prescriptions and did not also include individuals who purchased them independently of a doctor’s advice.
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