cardiovascular-agents and Esophageal-Neoplasms

In a recent article published in The Lancet, investigators studied the impact of daily aspirin use on subsequent cancer deaths. Utilizing data from more than 25,000 patients enrolled in 8 large trials, which were originally intended to study the impact of daily aspirin use on the incidence of cardiovascular events, the authors found a substantial decrease in risk of fatal solid organ malignancies. In particular, the risk reduction was specific to adenocarcinomas. The findings from this study are highly relevant to the thoracic surgeon, with adenocarcinomas of the lung and esophagus among those tumors demonstrating the most profound risk reduction.

Topics: Adenocarcinoma; Adenocarcinoma of Lung; Anticarcinogenic Agents; Aspirin; Cardiovascular Agents; Cardiovascular Diseases; Esophageal Neoplasms; Humans; Incidence; Lung Neoplasms; Neoplasms; Preventive Health Services; Risk Assessment; Risk Factors

We investigated the incidence of upper gastrointestinal lesions in the esophagus, stomach and duodenum in patients on low-dose aspirin (LDA) therapy.. The subjects were 101 consecutive outpatients who had been on LDA therapy (average age 67.2 +/- 8.3 years; male : female ratio 3.8:1). All subjects underwent endoscopy without ceasing their antiplatelet or anticoagulant therapy. We investigated the rates of endoscopic peptic ulcer, reflux esophagitis (RE) and malignant lesion.. RE was detected in eight subjects and esophageal ulcer in one subject. The severity of RE, according to the Los Angeles classification, was grade A in one subject, B in four, C in two and D in one. All nine subjects (8.9%) with RE and esophageal ulcer were negative for Helicobacter pylori infection. Gastric ulcer was detected in 12 subjects (six H. pylori positive, six negative) and duodenal ulcer in four (one H. pylori positive, three negative). The incidence of gastroduodenal ulcer was 15.8% (16/101). The incidence of esophageal and gastric cancers was high at 5.9% (6/101). Subjects were surveyed using the gastrointestinal symptom rating scale, with no differences in scores for acid reflux, abdominal pain or indigestion according to the presence or absence of RE, gastric ulceration or duodenal ulceration.. Upper gastrointestinal mucosal injuries and neoplasm were found in not only the stomach, but also the esophagus and duodenum in LDA taking subjects. These results emphasize the importance of endoscopic surveillance in patients on LDA therapy.

Topics: Aged; Aspirin; Cardiovascular Agents; Duodenal Ulcer; Endoscopy, Digestive System; Esophageal Neoplasms; Esophagitis, Peptic; Female; Helicobacter Infections; Helicobacter pylori; Humans; Incidence; Japan; Male; Middle Aged; Pilot Projects; Severity of Illness Index; Stomach Neoplasms; Stomach Ulcer