Daily Telegraph: Aspirin can increase risk of bowel cancer for some, study suggests

An article entitled "Aspirin can increase risk of bowel cancer for some study suggests" recently appeared in the Daily Telegraph.  The report referred to an American study, recently published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) The study looked at data from 10 previous studies that collected information on use of aspirin and other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) before a diagnosis of bowel cancer was made.

Overall, the researchers found, in keeping with many previous studies, that people who took aspirin and/or other NSAIDs were less likely to be diagnosed with bowel cancer. They also noted that this link may differ according to the genetic make-up of the individual. For a few individuals (only 4% of the group studied with a rare genetic profile) aspirin use was associated with a slightly higher risk of bowel cancer. This is a preliminary finding and will need to be confirmed in other studies. Participants in the Add-Aspirin Trial will have had a previous diagnosis and treatment for cancer, and so their risk of cancer returning will be higher than in the general population and they may derive an even greater benefit from taking aspirin. We do not believe that this new information affects the rationale for the trial but we will continue to monitor all new information carefully.