Commonly available pain relief medications, such as aspirin and ibuprofen, can significantly improve survival for certain patients with head and neck cancer, according to a study published in Journal of Experimental Medicine.
Researchers examined 266 patients from the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center whose tumors were surgically removed. Sixty-seven percent received post-surgery chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy. Median overall survival was five and a half years.
Around 28 percent of patients in the study had a mutated PIK3CA gene, which is the most commonly altered oncogene for head and neck cancers.
The research team found that regular use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs for six months provided significantly improved survival rates among head and neck cancer patients who had the mutated PIK3CA gene, as compared to patients with the mutation who did not use NSAIDs; the medications increased overall five-year survival rates from 25 percent to 78 percent.
However, patients without the gene mutation did not experience improved survival by taking NSAIDs.