H&O What are the possible benefits of daily aspirin use? CF The benefits of aspirin in terms of prevention of cardiovascular disease are well established. The US Preventive Services Task Force recommends regular aspirin use for men 45 years of age and older and for women 55 years of age and older as a preventative for cardiovascular disease. Researchers have since embarked on a number of studies looking at aspirin and its ability to prevent colorectal cancer based, in part, on some early preclinical data and studies in small populations, as well as on the phenomenon that the punitive target of aspirin, cyclooxygenase 2 (COX-2), is expressed in the majority of colorectal adenomas and cancers. We have studied the relationship of aspirin use and colon adenoma and cancer risk in several cohorts, mainly the Nurses' Health Study and the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study; these are large prospective cohorts of over 170,000 patients. From our analysis we found that aspirin use on a regular basis significantly reduces the subsequent risk of developing colorectal adenomas and cancers.
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