8517
0
Posted on Jun 19, 2004, 3 a.m.
By Bill Freeman
Aspirin and Cancer Prevention: Breast Cancer, The List Gets LongerWomen on Long Island, New York Reveal Possible Route to Lessen Breast Cancer RiskIf he were speaking about aspirin Winston Churchill might have said, "Never Has So Much Been Claimed By So Many for Something So Small". The list of purported aspirin benefits just seems to get bigger and bigger.
Aspirin and Cancer Prevention: Breast Cancer, The List Gets LongerWomen on Long Island, New York Reveal Possible Route to Lessen Breast Cancer RiskIf he were speaking about aspirin Winston Churchill might have said, "Never Has So Much Been Claimed By So Many for Something So Small". The list of purported aspirin benefits just seems to get bigger and bigger. With all these studies it can be confusing, really confusing. Probably the claim with the most evidence is that people who consume aspirin regularly tend to have fewer heart attacks. See Heart Attack Prevention and Aspirin: Yet Another Study Says Aspirin Lowers Heart Attack Risk and there have also been a number of reports of the benefits of aspirin against colorectal cancer.
Confusing History of AspirinBut the long fascinating history of aspirin is definitely confusing. To show just how confusing it can get, there have been reports saying that aspirin can both decrease and increase the chance of pancreatic cancer. See In a Finding That Seems Contrary to All the Good Things Attribued to Aspirin A Report Links Aspirin Use to Pancreatic Cancer in Women and even with all the possible benefits there are problems with aspirin for some people, problems like bleeding, ulcer and asthma among others. See also 'An Aspirin a Day' -- Just Another Cliché?
Now comes the latest addition to the litany of testimonials. Researchers studied the pill taking habits of women on Long Island, New York in 1996-1997. In the Journal of the American Medical Association they publish Association of Frequency and Duration of Aspirin Use and Hormone Receptor Status With Breast Cancer Risk. The researchers asked women about their use of aspirin and found that women who took aspirin on a regular basis had a lower risk of developing estrogen receptor positive breast cancer, a very common variety. Here is an easier to understand explanation of the report in the form of an interview with one of the authors Dr. Alfred NeugutAspirin and Cancer: Interview with Dr. Alfred Neugut.
What is Estrogen Receptor Positive Breast CancerEasy to Understand Explanation of Estrogen Receptors and Breast CancerEstrogens are hormones, specifically estrogen is the female hormone. As the article below says "estrogen..is a hormone which means that (it) functions as a signaling molecule. A signaling molecule exerts its effects by traveling through the bloodstream and interacting with cells in a variety of target tissues". "The breast and the uterus(womb), which play central roles in sexual reproduction, are two of the main targets of estrogen. In addition, estrogen molecules act on the brain, bone, liver, and heart." Many breast cancers have "estrogen receptors" which fit with the estrogn molecule like a lock and key. When the lock and key come together it triggers the start of other chemical reactions in the cell. Here's a colorful and easy to understand explanation of estrogen receptors and the breast from the National Cancer Institute Understanding Estrogen Receptors, Tamoxifen, and Raloxifene
Confusing History of AspirinBut the long fascinating history of aspirin is definitely confusing. To show just how confusing it can get, there have been reports saying that aspirin can both decrease and increase the chance of pancreatic cancer. See In a Finding That Seems Contrary to All the Good Things Attribued to Aspirin A Report Links Aspirin Use to Pancreatic Cancer in Women and even with all the possible benefits there are problems with aspirin for some people, problems like bleeding, ulcer and asthma among others. See also 'An Aspirin a Day' -- Just Another Cliché?
Now comes the latest addition to the litany of testimonials. Researchers studied the pill taking habits of women on Long Island, New York in 1996-1997. In the Journal of the American Medical Association they publish Association of Frequency and Duration of Aspirin Use and Hormone Receptor Status With Breast Cancer Risk. The researchers asked women about their use of aspirin and found that women who took aspirin on a regular basis had a lower risk of developing estrogen receptor positive breast cancer, a very common variety. Here is an easier to understand explanation of the report in the form of an interview with one of the authors Dr. Alfred NeugutAspirin and Cancer: Interview with Dr. Alfred Neugut.
What is Estrogen Receptor Positive Breast CancerEasy to Understand Explanation of Estrogen Receptors and Breast CancerEstrogens are hormones, specifically estrogen is the female hormone. As the article below says "estrogen..is a hormone which means that (it) functions as a signaling molecule. A signaling molecule exerts its effects by traveling through the bloodstream and interacting with cells in a variety of target tissues". "The breast and the uterus(womb), which play central roles in sexual reproduction, are two of the main targets of estrogen. In addition, estrogen molecules act on the brain, bone, liver, and heart." Many breast cancers have "estrogen receptors" which fit with the estrogn molecule like a lock and key. When the lock and key come together it triggers the start of other chemical reactions in the cell. Here's a colorful and easy to understand explanation of estrogen receptors and the breast from the National Cancer Institute Understanding Estrogen Receptors, Tamoxifen, and Raloxifene
