Aspirin reduces obesity cancer risk

Research has shown that a regular dose of aspirin reduces the long-term risk of cancer in those who are overweight. Researchers found that being overweight more than doubled the risk of bowel cancer in people with Lynch Syndrome, an inherited genetic disorder which affects genes responsible for detecting and repairing damage in the DNA. Around half of these people develop cancer, mainly in the bowel and womb. However, over the course of a ten year study they found this risk could be counteracted with a regular dose of aspirin. Professor Tim Bishop, from the School of Medicine at the University of Leeds, led the statistical analysis for the research. He said: “Our study suggests that the daily aspirin dose of 600 mg per day removed the majority of the increased risk associated with higher body mass index (BMI). However, this needs to be shown in a further study to confirm the extent of the protective power of the aspirin with respect to BMI.