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Lynch HomeTaking AspirinDeciding whether to take aspirin

Deciding whether to take aspirin

This session is for you if:

  1. You have Lynch syndrome
  2. You are thinking about taking aspirin every day to lower your chance of cancer
  3. You are not currently planning treatment for cancer.

You might also be looking for information as you consider genetic testing for Lynch, or for a family member or loved one.

Some people with Lynch syndrome may not be recommended to take aspirin every day including:

  • People younger than 18 years
  • People older than 70 years, because side effects can be worse when over 70
  • People being treated for cancer
  • People more than 30 weeks pregnant
  • People who are breastfeeding
  • People with stomach ulcers or bleeding problems now or in the past
  • Some people with other medical problems like asthma, or problems with the liver, kidneys or heart
  • People who are allergic to aspirin or have reacted badly to similar medicines before

If you fit into one or more of these groups, you can still look at this session if you want to talk to your GP or genetics service to check if taking aspirin is right for you. There are also other things you can do to lower your chance of cancer.

What are my choices?

  • Aspirin lowers the chance of getting bowel cancer. We don’t yet know if aspirin also lowers the chance of getting other cancers for people with Lynch syndrome.
  • You can choose to:
    • Take aspirin every day
    • Not take aspirin every day
    • Or wait to decide later.
  • You should not start taking aspirin daily before speaking to your GP or genetics service.
  • We don’t yet know the best dose of aspirin. Most people are prescribed 150-300mg a day, depending on their weight. If you are taking 75mg of aspirin, you might want to speak to your GP or genetics service to check this is still the best dose for you.
  • This session will help you decide what is right for you at the moment.

This picture shows where your small and large bowel are:

diagram showing small and large bowel

Click here to see how your bowel works

How will this session help me?

Decisions about your health can be difficult, and there is no right or wrong choice. This session helps you think about your choices and what they mean for you.

It gives you:

  1. Brief information about your choices, followed by more details if you want them.
  2. Support to help you think about what’s important to you.
  3. A summary to take back to your GP or genetics service or talk about with your family.

Click next to see what these choices mean for you

CanGene CanVar Cancer Research UK University of Southampton