Gene Mutation Identifies Colorectal Cancer Patients Who Live Longer With Aspirin Therapy

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/10/121024175357.htm

ScienceDaily (Oct. 24, 2012) — Aspirin therapy can extend the life of colorectal cancer patients whose tumors carry a mutation in a key gene, but has no effect on patients who lack the mutation, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute scientists report in the Oct. 25 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

In a study involving more than 900 patients with colorectal cancer, the researchers found that, for patients whose tumors harbored a mutation in the gene PIK3CA, aspirin use produced a sharp jump in survival: five years after diagnosis, 97 percent of those taking aspirin were still alive, compared to 74 percent of those not using aspirin. By contrast, aspirin had no impact on five-year survival rates among patients without a PIK3CA mutation.

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