Studies Don’t Settle Debate on Cancer Risk, Aspirin

CHICAGO — Men who took aspirin over five years slightly lowered their risk for prostate cancer, but women who took low doses over 10 years didn’t reduce their risk of cancer, two separate studies indicate.

The conflicting results don’t help settle the debate about whether aspirin and similar anti-inflammatory medicines could be used to prevent cancer. Doctors familiar with the research think different study designs and aspirin doses explain the contrasting findings.

“I don’t think we have a final story on aspirin” and its effects on cancer, said Dr. Peter Greenwald, director of cancer prevention at the National Cancer Institute, which helped fund the Women’s Health Study.

That study, involving nearly 40,000 women, is among the longest aspirin-cancer studies to date and used doses a little higher than in baby aspirin, taken every other day and compared against dummy pills.

It found no effect on lymphoma, colorectal, breast or several other cancers, although results for lung cancer were less conclusive.