A trial to help stop polyps forming in the bowel (ukCAP)

Cancer type:

Bowel (colorectal) cancer

Status:

Results

Phase:

Phase 3

This trial looked at aspirin and folate to prevent bowel polyps (adenomas) forming. This trial was supported by Cancer Research UK.

Most bowel cancers develop from polyps. So preventing polyps from forming could lower the risk of bowel cancer. Earlier research suggested that aspirin and folate (a vitamin in our normal diets) may prevent polyps from forming.

This trial recruited people who had already had one or more polyps removed from their bowel. The aim of the trial was to find out if a daily dose of folate or aspirin, or both, could help stop polyps forming again and so help prevent bowel cancer.

Summary of results

The researchers found that aspirin is a useful treatment to help stop polyps coming back.

This large trial recruited 945 people

One quarter had folate alone
One quarter had aspirin alone
One quarter had aspirin and folate
One quarter had dummy tablets (placebo)

853 patients had a colonoscopy 3 years after they started treatment in this trial. The researchers published the results in 2008. They looked at whose polyps had come back. They found

Aspirin reduced the risk of the polyps coming back by 21%
Aspirin also reduced the risk of advanced polyps developing by 37%
Folate had no effect on polyps growing back

We have based this summary on information from the team who ran the trial. The information they sent us has been reviewed by independent specialists (peer reviewed Open a glossary item ) and published in a medical journal. The figures we quote above were provided by the trial team. We have not analysed the data ourselves.