Researchers ponder aspirin's potential in preventing cancer

摘要

A review article published online August 5 might leave some readers wondering whether it's time to start adding aspirin to the drinking water. The article, written by a team of US and European scientists, concludes that the benefits of daily, long-term aspirin use outweigh the potential harms-namely gastrointestinal (Gl) bleeding and hemorrhagic stroke-for a large swath of the middle-aged population (Cuzick J et al. Ann Oncol. doi:10.1093/annonc/mdu225 [published online August 5, 2014]). While it's no surprise that aspirin can protect against cardiovascular events, the drug's added value is that it appears to reduce the risk of a variety of cancers, according to the report.