Association between low-dose aspirin use and breast cancer recurrence: a Danish nationwide cohort study with up to 23 years of follow-up.

BACKGROUND

The anti-cancer potential of low-dose aspirin in long-term breast cancer (BC) survivors remain unknown. We evaluated the association between low-dose aspirin use and BC recurrence and mortality.

METHODS

Women ≥40 years diagnosed with stage I-III BC (1996-2004) were identified from the Danish Breast Cancer Group (DBCG) database and information on aspirin use from the Danish Prescription Registry. We ascertained recurrences from DBCG and via a validated algorithm. We plotted cumulative incidences of recurrence and mortality, accounting for competing risks. Using Cox regression, we estimated hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CI), employing landmark analyses at 5-, 10-, and 15-year post-diagnosis.

RESULTS

Among 20,509 BC survivors, 4527 developed recurrence over 232,441 person-years of follow-up. The 20-year cumulative incidence of recurrence was lower in users (17.8%) than nonusers (22.4%), with similar trends among 10-year disease-free survivors (9.9% vs. 12.7%). We observed reduced HRs of recurrence (adjusted HR = 0.80, (95% CI = 0.66-0.98); HR = 0.87 (0.73-1.05); HR = 0.82 (0.57-1.17) in aspirin users, but increased HRs of all-cause mortality (HR = 1.08 (0.96-1.21); HR = 1.09 (0.96-1.24); HR = 1.09 (0.80-1.31).

CONCLUSIONS

The reduced recurrence risk in aspirin users may indicate potential anti-cancer effects of aspirin, though the increased risk of death suggests influence by confounding by indication and competing risks.