Can aspirin stop cancer from returning? New clinical trials begin to find out the power the pill holds

'A cheap and simple way to help stop cancer coming back'

11,000 patients who recently or currently have bowel, breast, esophageal, prostate or stomach cancer have been recruited for the world's largest clinical trial to see whether daily doses of aspirin can stop cancer from returning.

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - The study will be conducted in over 100 centers for up to the next twelve years. The patients will be either taking placebos, 300mg or 100mg of aspirin each day. The trial is funded by Cancer Research UK and National Institute for Health Research, with an overall goal to see whether taking aspirin daily for five years will make a difference in cancers that have been treated at an early stage.

Professor Ruth Langley, chief investigator from the Medical Research Council Clinical Trials Unit at University College London, said, "There's been some interesting research suggesting that aspirin could delay or stop early-stage cancers coming back, but there's been no randomized trial to give clear proof. This trial aims to answer this question once and for all.

"If we find that aspirin does stop these cancers returning, it could change future treatment - providing a cheap and simple way to help stop cancer coming back and helping more people survive. But, unless you are on the trial, it's important not to start taking aspirin until we have the full results as aspirin isn't suitable for everyone, and it can have serious side-effects."

Daily Mail UK reported a Dutch study that found 75 percent of patients taking a daily dose of aspirin were still alive following diagnoses of bowel, stomach, pancreatic and throat cancer, while the survival rate for those not taking aspirin was 42 percent.

Cancer Research UK's head of population research, Dr. Fiona Reddington, said, "Aspirin's possible effects on cancer are fascinating and we hope this trial will give us a clear answer on whether or not the drug helps stop some cancers coming back.

"This trial is especially exciting as cancers that recur are often harder to treat so finding a cheap and effective way to prevent this is potentially game-changing for patients."

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