Low doses of aspirin could reduce the risk of pancreatic cancer, a new study by the Yale School of Public Health shows.

For the study, researchers analysed medical records 1,052 patients. The data was collected from 2005 to 2009. The team noted that 362 of them had pancreatic cancer and the rest did not have the condition.

The researchers compared aspirin-use of the patients and risk of cancer. They found that people who followed a low-dose aspirin plan for 6 years or less, had a 39 percent less risk of developing pancreatic cancer. Patients who took low-dose aspirin for more than 10 years, had a 60 percent-reduced risk of pancreatic cancer. A low dose of aspirin was defined as 75 to 325 milligrams.

"We found that the use of low-dose aspirin was associated with cutting the risk of pancreatic cancer in half, with some evidence that the longer low-dose aspirin was used, the lower the risk. Because about one in 60 adults will get pancreatic cancer and the five-year survival rate is less than 5 percent, it is crucial to find ways to prevent this disease," said Harvey A. Risch, MD, PhD, professor of epidemiology in the Department of Chronic Disease Epidemiology at the Yale School of Public Health in New Haven, CT added, reports Medical Xpress.

"Aspirin interrupts the inflammatory pathway in the body," explained LaPook. "It turns out those same pathways look like they're part of the pathways that can lead to cancer. If you interrupt those pathways, theoretically that might be the reason why you lower the risk for cancer. We don't know that for sure, but that's one thought."

According to the researchers, people with family history of pancreatic cancer or have other risk factors for the disease could benefit from taking low-dose aspirin. However, patients must consult with their primary care physicians before taking any sort of medication.

The study was published in the journal, Cancer, Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention.