This is the Medscape Medical Minute. I'm Dr. George Lundberg.
Colorectal neoplasia matters since colon cancer remains a big killer. Many colon cancers arise in adenomas. Both oral aspirin and folic acid have been reported in observational studies to reduce colorectal neoplasms. Investigators in Nottingham, England, report in the journal Gastroenterology in 2008 a multicenter, randomized, double-blind, controlled trial of daily oral aspirin and folate supplements. They followed several hundred patients who had already had 1 adenoma removed and performed colonoscopy after 3 years. Twenty-three percent of those in the aspirin group developed a recurrent adenoma vs 29% on placebo. Of the 104 patients who developed an advanced adenoma, roughly half as many were in the aspirin group. Folate had no effect. Bottom line: Aspirin helps to prevent the development of advanced colorectal adenomas; folate does not.
This Medscape Medical Minute article[1] is selected from Medscape Best Evidence.[2] I'm Dr. George Lundberg.
Footnotes
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References
- 1.Logan RF, Grainge MJ, Shepherd VC, Armitage NC, Muir KR. Aspirin and folic acid for the prevention of recurrent colorectal adenomas. Gastroenterology. 2008;134:29–38. doi: 10.1053/j.gastro.2007.10.014. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- 2.Material for the Medscape Medical Minute is drawn from Medscape Best Evidence. Available at: http://www.medscape.com/pages/features/newsletters/bestevidence/gastroenterology Accessed March 13, 2008.