The study was carried out by a team of researchers at the University of Vermont. They looked at data from different studies involving 2,698 people from the United States, Canada, Britain, Denmark and France in an attempt to determine the role of daily aspirin in reducing one’s chances of developing polyps that can lead to colorectal cancer.

The study found that those who were regular consumers of aspirin were up to 28 percent less likely to develop advanced adenomas compared to those in the control group, who took a placebo. At the same time, they were less likely to develop any adenoma than those who took a placebo.  

Among those who stopped taking the drug, the protective effect of aspirin continued for some time, the researchers noted.

 

“It is advantageous that aspirin is effective for preventing advanced lesions, because these lesions tend to progress more rapidly to invasive cancer,” the researchers said.

The study was published in the Feb. 18 issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

 

On the other hand, other studies noted that pain relievers like aspirin and ibuprofen appeared to lower a man’s PSA level, which is measured annually to screen for prostate cancer. Lower levels of PSA (a protein produced by cells in the prostate gland) are confusing in prostate cancer screening. People who took Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs (NSAIDs) had about a 10% lower level of Prostate-Specific Antigen (known as PSAs), the protein whose presence in a man’s bloodstream is used in tests for prostate cancer.

 

Colorectal cancer includes cancer of the colon (large intestine) or rectum. It is the third most common cancer in men and women. Screening for colon cancer is recommended for everyone older than 50 years and especially for individuals who have significant risk factors such as age (those older than 50 years are more exposed to the disease), family history, personal medical history and lifestyle (smoking, heavy alcohol use, inactivity, obesity).

 

According to estimates of the American Cancer Society 148,810 people will be diagnosed with colorectal cancer this year and 49,960 people will die of the disease. A recent study on patients with an average risk of colon cancer has revealed that patients with no signs of precancerous polyps on an initial test have an extremely low risk of developing colon cancer in the next five years.

 

There are some simple steps that you can do starting today to prevent cancer: avoid smoking, limit alcohol intake, exercise for cancer prevention and get regular screening tests.