The Cheap Little Pill that May Prevent Colon Cancer!

There's a pill you probably have in your cabinet right now that may help to prevent colon cancer. This pill is both inexpensive and easy to find at your local drugstore, grocery store, or even your local convenience store.

What is this miracle pill? It's the common pain killer, aspirin!

The results of two large studies published in the esteemed medical journal Lancet show that aspirin can reduce the risk of colon cancer by 37% when taken for five years or longer and by 74% when taken for 10 to 15 years. The aspirin dosages used in the studies was 300 mg or more per day.

Although these are, indeed, encouraging results, more studies will be needed to confirm these preliminary findings. It's too early to recommend those with a normal risk of colon cancer take aspirin for prevention. Plus, the optimal dose of aspirin for colon cancer prevention has not yet been determined. It must be kept in mind that aspirin can have potential side effects such as the risk of bleeding from the gastrointestinal tract which may limit its usage in some people.

Just how much of an impact could this finding have? Colorectal cancer is now the second leading cause of cancer death in the United States and is the third most common cancer in men and women. A person's lifetime chance of getting colon cancer is 5% in the U.S. These are indeed sobering statistics! That a widely available pill and inexpensive pill such as aspirin can reduce the risk by up to 74% is good news if further studies support these findings.