Scientific Reports (Oct 2024)

Association of prophylactic low-dose aspirin use with all-cause and cause-specific mortality in cancer patients

  • Hui Hu,
  • Wen-jun Chen,
  • Zi-yi Xiong,
  • Lin-fei Luo,
  • Chuang Sun,
  • Jun-ping Xie

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-75612-w
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 14, no. 1
pp. 1 – 8

Abstract

Read online

Abstract The long-term use of aspirin for preventing cardiovascular disease has been recommended for decades. However, there is currently uncertainty regarding the long-term effects of aspirin use on the risk of all-cause, cardiovascular, and cancer mortality in cancer patients. The aim of this work was to analyze the connection between the prophylactic use of low-dose aspirin and the risk of all-cause death, cardiovascular death, and carcinoma death in carcinoma patients in the United States. A cohort study was conducted using National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) data (2011–2012, 2013–2014, 2015–2016, and 2017–2018) and associated mortality data. The 95% confidence intervals (CIs) and hazard ratios (HRs) between non-aspirin use and prophylactic low-dose aspirin use and the risk of death were measured via Cox proportional hazard regression models. A total of 1819 participants were included in the present research, of whom 945 were nonaspirin users and 874 were prophylactic aspirin users. Compared with non-aspirin users, prophylactic low-dose aspirin users had a decreased risk of all-cause death (HR = 0.647, 95% CI = 0.489–0.857). There was no statistically significant difference in the risk of cardiovascular death (HR = 0.623, 95% CI = 0.362–1.074) or cancer death (HR = 0.709, 95% CI = 0.410–1.226). Prophylactic use of low-dose aspirin may lower all-cause mortality in individuals with cancer but does not have a substantial effect on cardiovascular risk or cancer-specific mortality in this patient population.

Keywords