New Evidence of Lower Risk for Lung Cancer with Low-Dose Aspirin

Inhibition of cyclooxygenase by aspirin is a plausible explanation for how aspirin could lower risk for lung cancer. Some randomized trials have shown a benefit for long-term, low-dose aspirin use, but epidemiological and cohort studies, especially in women, have shown no benefit. In this Korean study, researchers used a national database to identify nearly 13,000,000 patients for whom information on aspirin use and lung cancer diagnoses was available. Low-dose aspirin use was defined as doses of ≤100 mg daily, at least 2 days per week.

During mean 5-year follow-up, about 63,000 cases of lung cancer were diagnosed. Analyses were adjusted for demographic variables and clinical risk factors. Compared with no aspirin use, long-term, low-dose as…