Daily, Long-Term Aspirin Use Reduces Colorectal Cancer Recurrence
By Lori Solomon HealthDay Reporter
FRIDAY, Jan. 31, 2025 -- Adjuvant treatment with 160 mg aspirin daily for three years cuts recurrence rates in patients with colorectal cancer with somatic alterations in the phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) signaling pathway, according to a study presented at the 2025 American Society of Clinical Oncology Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium, held Jan. 23 to 25 in San Francisco.
Anna Martling, M.D., Ph.D., from the Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm, and colleagues randomly assigned 626 patients with stage I to III rectal cancer or stage II to III colon cancer with somatic alterations in the PI3K signaling pathways to either 160 mg of aspirin daily or placebo, within three months after surgery and continued for three years, as part of the ALASCCA trial.
The researchers found that after three years of follow-up, time to recurrence was lower for participants assigned to aspirin versus placebo (PIK3CA mutations in exon 9 and/or 20: hazard ratio, 0.49; 95 percent confidence interval [CI], 0.24 to 0.98; P = 0.044; PIK3CA mutations outside exon 9/20, PIK3R1 mutations, or PTEN mutations: hazard ratio, 0.42; 95 percent CI, 0.21 to 0.83; P = 0.013). A similar trend was seen for disease-free survival (hazard ratios, 0.61 [95 percent CI, 0.34 to 1.08; P = 0.091] and 0.51 [95 percent CI, 0.29 to 0.88; P = 0.017], respectively). Aspirin-related severe adverse events occurred in three patients (one gastrointestinal bleeding, one hematoma, and one allergic reaction).
"We have studied and demonstrated the value of a widely used, well-established, and cost-effective drug with a low-risk profile for patients with colorectal cancer," Martling said in a statement. "In addition, this research highlights the importance of precision medicine and the use of advanced diagnostics. These tools can enable tailored treatments and the repurposing of existing drugs for new applications."
Several authors disclosed ties to the pharmaceutical industry.
Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.
© 2025 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
Posted January 2025
Read this next
Considerable Proportion of Colonoscopy Bowel Preparation Claims Involve Cost-Sharing
WEDNESDAY, July 2, 2025 -- A considerable proportion of bowel preparation claims for screening colonoscopy involve patient cost-sharing, according to a research letter published...
CRC as First of Multiple Primary Malignancies Tied to Better Outcomes Than CRC as Only Malignancy
THURSDAY, June 26, 2025 -- Compared with colorectal cancer (CRC) presenting as an isolated primary or second primary malignancy, CRC presenting as the first of multiple primary...
Anal Cancer Screening Cost-Effective for HIV+ Men Who Have Sex With Men ≥35 Years of Age
TUESDAY, June 17, 2025 -- For men who have sex with men (MSM) with HIV, aged 35 years or older, anal cancer screening is cost-effective, according to a study published online June...
More news resources
- FDA Medwatch Drug Alerts
- Daily MedNews
- News for Health Professionals
- New Drug Approvals
- New Drug Applications
- Drug Shortages
- Clinical Trial Results
- Generic Drug Approvals
Subscribe to our newsletter
Whatever your topic of interest, subscribe to our newsletters to get the best of Drugs.com in your inbox.