Scientists in the U.S. say an aspirin a day may afford women some protection against the most common type of breast cancer, estrogen receptor or ER-positive breast cancer.
The researchers from the National Cancer Institute, which is part of the National Institutes of Health, have found that women who took aspirin daily cut their risk of developing this type of breast cancer by 16 percent.
Earlier research has indicated that the regular use of aspirin might reduce the risk of ER-positive breast cancer, which account for around three quarters of all breast cancer cases.
ER-positive breast cancer is fueled by estrogen and it is thought that aspirin may interfere with the hormone's behaviour.
The team led by Dr. Gretchen Gierach say though the risk reduction is small, as ER-positive breast cancers are the more common types, it could have potentially a big public health impact.
The study involved around 127,000 women aged 51 to 72 from across the U.S. who were cancer-free when the study began; the women were tracked for seven years and about 4,500 of them developed breast cancer.
Of the group about 18 percent of the women were daily aspirin users and while the researchers did not find any relationship between aspirin and the less-common estrogen receptor-negative breast cancer, it also did not find any protective effect in women who took aspirin less than daily.
The research is the latest to suggest aspirin offers a range of health benefits apart from relieving headaches and body aches and reducing fevers....it is a common anti-inflammatory painkiller that can be used to relieve symptoms of arthritis and prevent second heart attacks and other ailments.
Other research has also suggested that it may protect against colorectal cancer.