Aspirin lowers risk of stomach cancer

London, February 7: A new study has found that the use of aspirin and other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) is significantly associated with lowering the risk of stomach cancerdefine.

Researchers followed over 300,000 people aged over 50 for seven years. They compared their use of aspirin and other types of pain-relief drugs with rates of stomach and oesophagus cancerdefine. It was thus found that the risk of a certain type of stomach cancer was cut by almost half on taking a tablet once a week. Also the risk was lowered by 36 percent among people who had used aspirin at least once in the previous 12 months.

The study also demonstrated that people who had taken any other sort of NSAID, such as ibuprofen, were 32 percent less likely to suffer the cancer, while those who took them weekly saw their risk drop by 43 percent.

Study author Dr Christian Abnet, based at the National Cancer Institute in Maryland, said, “We found that the risk of middle and lower stomach cancer was lower in people who had taken aspirin, and this risk lowered the more regularly they took it.”

However, headded, "Interestingly, our results didn't show a significant cut in the risk of oesophageal or cardia (upper) stomach cancer, so it's important that we continue to review data that suggests otherwise."

According to the study, though aspirin use has benefits, high-frequency use can increase the risk of serious health problems. The researchers too caution against daily aspirin use, saying that “the expected benefits do not outweigh the risks” for the general population. The people should consult their doctors before regularly taking aspirin.

Lesley Walker of Cancer Research U.K. warned, "It's far too early to recommend that people take aspirin to protect themselves from these cancers. In cancers where survival is low, understanding how to prevent the disease is crucial, but more research is needed to discover how side effects can be balanced with the benefits.”

Almost 8,000 people a year are diagnosed with stomach cancer in the United Kingdom and around 5,250 people die from the disease. Only 24 percent of people with the cancer live longer than five years.

Abnet said, "The number of people who survive at least five years following a diagnosis of stomach or oesophageal cancer is low, so it's important to increase our understanding of ways to prevent the disease and to investigate aspirin as a possible preventative drug."

The study was funded by the National Cancer Institute and published in the British Journal of Cancer.