Aspirin offers bowel cancer hope

My Account
Logout

Create an Evening Standard Account

Use your social network

Save time by using your existing account to sign in to Evening Standard

We'll never share your information or post anything to your account without your permission

Welcome! Sign in here

Use your social network

Save time by using your existing account to sign in to Evening Standard

We'll never share your information or post anything to your account without your permission

Forgot your password ?

Registration

* indicates fields that are mandatory

Email *

Password *

Confirm Password *

First name *

Surname *

Postcode *

Country *

Mobile phone number

Username *

Gender *

Year of birth *

When you sign up...

You will have access to all our online competitions, discounted offers and can post comments on our site.

You will also receive The Weekender newsletter sent every Thursday - it’s full of fantastic offers and ideas for the weekend. You can update your email preferences in your account page when you log in.

Other newsletters and emails

Homes & Property Newsletter - Yes I want to receive the weekly email with all the latest news on property in the capital

Occasionally we would also like to send you relevant emails detailing specific offers either from ourselves or carefully selected partners. If you would prefer not to receive these then please tick the appropriate boxes below. We will never pass on your details.

I do not want to receive additional offers and information from the Evening Standard

I do not want to receive additional offers and information sent by Evening Standard on behalf of carefully selected partners

Terms and Conditions

* I have read, understood and agree to be bound by the terms and conditions of Evening Standard

Registration

Mail Sent for Registration Confirmation.

A confirmation email has been sent. Please activate your account by clicking on the activation link sent in your mail box.

Researchers found taking a daily dose of 300mg or more of aspirin for five years can prevent colorectal cancer later in life.

Incidence of bowel cancer was reduced by up to 74% a decade to 15 years after the treatment was started.

The cancer typically takes at least 10 years to develop from pre-cancerous growths in the gut.

Except in special circumstances, doctors generally advise against long-term aspirin use because of the risk of serious side effects such as internal bleeding and stomach ulcers.

But the authors of the new study, reported in The Lancet medical journal, say in the case of people with a higher-than-average risk of bowel cancer the benefits may outweigh the risks.

Each year, around 35,000 men and women in the UK are diagnosed with bowel cancer, and more than 16,000 die from the disease.

The new research, led by Professor Peter Rothwell from Radcliffe Infirmary, Oxford, revisited patients from two large aspirin trials conducted in the late 1970s and early 1980s.

The aim was to see if regularly taking aspirin had any delayed effect on bowel cancer rates.

Using aspirin for five years was found to reduce the subsequent incidence of bowel cancer by 37% overall, and 74% during the period 10 to 15 years after the trials started.