Long-term effects of low-dose aspirin on cancer, heart disease, bleeding, and dementia over 15 years
Aspirins legacy on cancer and overall benefit: risk balance over a 15-year horizon
This project looks at whether taking low-dose aspirin in older adults leads to long-term benefits or harms for cancer, heart disease, bleeding, and dementia over a 15-year period.
Quick facts
| Grant type | U01 cooperative agreement |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Massachusetts General Hospital NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Boston, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11199014 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
If you are an older adult, researchers will follow people from the ASPREE-XT extension who did or did not take low-dose aspirin and track cancer, cardiovascular events, gastrointestinal bleeding, and dementia outcomes over many years. You would contribute by attending follow-up visits and allowing access to medical records and screening results so researchers can count long-term outcomes. The team will update risk models to better predict who is likely to benefit or be harmed, with special attention to the oldest-old. The goal is to help personalize aspirin decisions based on an individual's long-term risks and benefits.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal candidates are community-dwelling older adults without prior cardiovascular disease who either participated in ASPREE or are similar primary prevention patients, especially those aged 70 and older including the oldest-old.
Not a fit: People with active bleeding disorders, those already needing aspirin for established cardiovascular disease, or those with very limited life expectancy are unlikely to gain benefit from this prevention-focused work.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could help older adults and their clinicians decide when a short course of low-dose aspirin is likely to reduce long-term cancer or cardiovascular deaths without unacceptable bleeding or dementia risk.
How similar studies have performed: Prior ASPREE trial results were mixed—aspirin raised bleeding risk and did not improve short-term disability-free survival, though later follow-up hinted at reduced cancer mortality, so long-term effects remain uncertain.
Where this research is happening
Boston, United States
- Massachusetts General Hospital — Boston, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Warner, Erica T — Massachusetts General Hospital
- Study coordinator: Warner, Erica T
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.