Aspirin Can Prevent Bowel Cancer
Daily high dose Aspirin of 300mg can dramatically reduce the risk of developing bowel cancer.
Bowel cancer is a big cause of morbidity in Singapore. The ability to reduce the risk of developing this disease with a simple Aspirin tablet could dramatically change a Nation’s health.
Daily treatment is needed for at least 5 years before the benefits are seen. The patients were treated in the 70s and 80s and followed up for the last 20 years. The treatment group saw a reduction in deaths from bowel cancer by 74%!
The risk reduction did not depend on age, sex, race or country of origin.
We recently saw that high doses of Aspirin can increase the risk of haemorrhagic stroke in the elderly. Aspirin can also increase the risk of gastro-intestinal bleeding.
We also know that low-dose Aspirin is cardio-protective. Further studies need to be done to see if Aspirin 75mg per day can protect against bowel cancer too.
In the meantime, daily Aspirin at 300mg should be considered for individuals at high risk of bowel cancer.