Aspirin prolongs the life of bowel cancer patients

A recent study has demonstrated that aspirin helps prolong the life of bowel cancer patients with mutated genes.

Research conducted on 900 patients at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute found that aspirin may prolong the life of certain cancer patients. For cancer patients with mutations in the PIK3CA gene, aspirin can make a big change. Specifically, up to 97% of cancer patients who take aspirin regularly can extend their life by 5 years compared to 74% of those who do not take aspirin.

However, this drug has no effect on patients who do not contain the PIK3CA mutation gene (if aspirin is taken, it can cause intestinal ulcers, stomach and stomach bleeding).

'This is the first time we have discovered a gene marker that can help doctors determine the appropriate treatment regimen for patients with bowel cancer,' said study leader Shuji Ogino.

Bowel cancer is one of the highest mortality rates in the world. The US National Cancer Institute said the United States currently has about 140,000 people infected and 50,000 have died of the disease in 2012 alone.