Taking an aspirin a day could PREVENT ‘silent killer’ cancer, experts reveal

TAKING an aspirin every day could prevent deadly ovarian cancer, new research suggests.

The common painkiller could also boost a woman's chance of surviving the "silent killer", should she ever develop the disease, it was found.

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Women who took low-dose aspirin were 10 per cent less likely to develop the cancer and 30 per cent more likely to survive it, experts at the National Cancer Institute and the Moffitt Cancer Center in the US found.

Low-dose aspirin is already prescribed to patients with heart conditions due to it's blood-thinning properties.

Scientists reviewed 13 studies that looked at more than 750,000 women and their aspirin use.

Of the women, 3,500 went on the develop ovarian cancer.

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But they found those who took aspirin were 10 per cent less likely to develop the disease.

Lead author Shelley Tworoger of the Moffitt Cancer Center, said: "This study gives us a new perspective on whether aspirin and non-aspirin NSAIDs can impact cancer risk.

"Not only does it look at ovarian cancer, which hasn't been studied before, our sample size is three-quarter of a million women who were followed for several decades.

"The results of the study support that aspirin can reduce ovarian cancer risk, but further studies will need to be performed before a recommendation of daily aspirin can be made."

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The study was published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

A second study, from the University of Hawaii, found women were 30 per cent more likely to survive the cancer when they took aspirin, based on data from nearly 1,000 women diagnosed with the disease.

ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW The signs and symptoms of ovarian cancer - and who's most at risk...

Melissa Merritt, of the University of Hawaii Cancer Center, said: "To our knowledge, this study contributes the first comprehensive assessment of use of several types of common analgesic medications, such as aspirin and non-aspirin nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, after diagnosis in relation to ovarian cancer survival.

"Our work demonstrates the importance of common medication in increasing survival rates of ovarian cancer, and this will encourage more studies to be conducted to confirm the results and broaden the discovery."

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Medications, such as aspirin and non-aspirin nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) like ibuprofen, have already been shown to lower the risk of certain types of cancers, most notably bowel cancer.

Ovarian cancer is the sixth most common form of women's cancer in the UK.

Around 7,400 new cases are diagnosed each year - that's around 20 per day.

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DEADLY SIGNS

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Many symptoms of ovarian cancer are hard to recognise as they are similar to conditions such as irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).

Early diagnosis is the key to survival, but many women may not notice symptoms straight away.

Things to look out for include:

• A swollen stomach
• Feeling bloated constantly
• Needing to urinate frequently
• Discomfort in your tummy or pelvic area
• Feeling full quickly when eating

If you have any of the symptoms of ovarian cancer you should go and see your GP.

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