Professor Anna Martling from the Karolinska Institutet led a major study that could shift how doctors treat bowel cancer.
She and her team found that patients who took 160 milligrams of acetylsalicylic acid daily for three years after surgery had a 50 percent lower risk of cancer returning compared to those who received a placebo.
The results only applied to patients with a specific genetic mutation in what is known as the PIK3 signaling pathway.
Around 40 percent of bowel cancer patients carry this mutation.
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Martling described the findings as a potential game-changer in clinical practice, emphasizing that such a reduction in recurrence risk is rare in cancer research.
Safe, accessible but not for everyone
Acetylsalicylic acid, the active ingredient in aspirin, has been used for more than a century to reduce pain and inflammation.
It is inexpensive, widely available and considered safe when used correctly.
Researchers believe it helps prevent cancer recurrence by lowering inflammation, slowing tumor growth and inhibiting blood platelets that can feed cancer cells.
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However, both Yaqub and Martling warn patients not to start taking aspirin on their own.
The medication can cause side effects and is not beneficial for every type of bowel cancer.
Still, for a significant group of patients, this simple drug may offer an affordable way to reduce the risk of cancer returning.
This article is based on information from Forskning.no.
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