Aspirin Lowers The Return Of Breast Cancer

There is a study that  finds Aspirin Lowers The Return Of Breast Cancer according to a new study recently
published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. That study showed that women with breast cancer who were taking a low dose of aspirin had a 46 percent lower risk of this recurrent disease. These figures are compared to those who did not take aspirin.

On an other hand, there was a study applied at Harvard Medical School that studied 4,164 nurses, whose age varied from 30 to 55, who had developed breast cancer between 1976 and 2002. Those nurses were followed until 2006. Almost half of those nurses, in the study were taking aspirin to reduce their risk of heart disease.

Doses taken was not documented, but it was shown that the majority of nurses, took the equivalent of one baby aspirin (81 milligrams) each day. The study surprisingly showed that not only did the women taking aspirin had a lower risk of recurrence, but the risk of death from breast cancer was also decreased.

Aspirin belongs to a class of drugs called nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs or NSAIDs. Motrin (ibuprofen), Aleve (naproxen) and Celebrex (celecoxib) are also NSAIDs. What are NSAIDs? NSAIDs are an analgesic used to relieve pain and to suppress the immune system. This is an effect that is often employed to treat patients with inflammatory disease, such as rheumatoid arthritis.

Low dose aspirin can also interferes with the ability of platelets to clump together, which has been shown to significantly reduce risk of heart attack and stroke. For patients at risk of heart disease, cholesterol deposits in arteries many times increases the incidence of platelet clumping, which is an initial step in the development of a blood clot or clots, that can lead to debilitating and often deadly heart attacks and stroke.

Interestingly, the benefits of aspirin on heart attack and stroke risk are much better in men than women, where aspirin has been shown to have little effect in those under 65 and only reduces stroke risk in women over 65 years of age.

There have been numerous studies that have shown that NSAIDs appear to prevent the development of cancer. A research from the 70′s revealed that taking NSAIDs suppressed the development of polyps in patients who were at a high risk of colon cancer. It also showed that in some cases even caused polyps to regress.

Still, from another study, patients who had been diagnosed with polyps took aspirin to reduce the risk of recurrence. It was also suggested that NSAIDs, may reduce the risk of cancer of the esophagus, stomach, breast, prostate and lung.

However, large pharmaceutical companies do not promote NSAIDs and they have not been widely promoted as cancer combating medications because the research has not been 100 percent positive.

Aspirin Lowers The Return Of Breast Cancer according to recent studies.

Then, in 1996, a clinical trial called the Physicians’ Health Study found that taking aspirin did not reduce the risk of colorectal cancer. Then almost ten years later, a study published in Journal of the American Medical Association followed thousands of women participating in the Women’s Health Study and that study found that aspirin did not prevent the development of breast cancer.

Though the final word on NSAIDs has not come in yet…the evidence still seems to indicate that aspirin may have a protective effect against cancer. But, those who benefit the most, depend on age, anyone at high risk of or diagnosed with breast, colon, prostate or lung cancer should take 81 milligrams of aspirin daily.

The other NSAIDs may also be effective in reducing cancer risk, but they should not be used as cancer prevention unless more compelling evidence is presented documenting significant value.

Take me, I can not take any of these because I have Lupus. I do not need my blood thinned and my kidneys have been affected from Lupus over the years. At on time I was taking 18,000 units of  Ibuprofen.  Because my pain was so great. I thought that NSAIDs were harmless. I was wrong they have affected my liver. When I quit taking aspirin and ibuprofen, I did not bruise as easily as I did before, but it took me a long time to get them out of my system.

NSAIDs are easily accessible and less expensive, but the drugs are not without side effects. Even at a low dose, for some, aspirin can cause significant irritation of the stomach and increase risk of bleeding. Approximately 1.2 people per 1,000 taking aspirin will have a major stomach bleed annually, a risk that is much higher than the risk of dying of any cancer.

Take note that Celebrex does have a lower risk of bleeding, but on the other side of the coin, it may increase heart attack and stroke risk.

All the NSAIDs can lead to high blood pressure and kidney disease. So, easily accessible and less expensive is not always the best way.

For Baby Boomers, men over the age of 50 and women over 65, the risk of heart attack and strokes has become so high that many believe that the benefits of taking aspirin outweigh the risks. I am not one of those people who believe that.

Please remember that  it is important to discuss every element of preventive therapy with your primary care physician or doctor.

There are all natural pain relievers out there as alternative medicines.

But remember, that complementing healthy lifestyle changes with the appropriate medications can mean health and happiness for years to come and give us longevity, that we seek.

Aspirin Lowers Return of Breast Cancer, but my Mother told me a long time ago, when she went back to nursing school, “for every action there is a reaction.” Make sure that your action is going to cause a good reaction.