--- title: "ASPirin in Reducing Events in the Elderly (ASPREE)" id: "7226" type: "study" slug: "sa000060" published_at: "2024-11-27T16:16:40+00:00" modified_at: "2026-03-26T16:32:18+00:00" url: "https://dss.niagads.org/studies/sa000060/" markdown_url: "https://dss.niagads.org/studies/sa000060.md" excerpt: "The ASPREE (ASPirin in Reducing Events in the Elderly) project comprises: a) a multi-center, bi-national randomized controlled trial (RCT) of 19,114 older people in Australia and the US aimed at understanding the effects of low-dose aspirin on health outcomes, and..." --- ## Description The ASPREE (ASPirin in Reducing Events in the Elderly) project comprises: a) a multi-center, bi-national randomized controlled trial (RCT) of 19,114 older people in Australia and the US aimed at understanding the effects of low-dose aspirin on health outcomes, and b) a longitudinal cohort study of aging, with observational follow-up after completion of the RCT phase. With a rapidly aging global population, the primary objective of the ASPREE project is to discover methods to maintain health, quality of life, and independence as people age. Inclusion Criteria: Participants in the ASPREE trial at baseline/enrolment were healthy adults aged ≥70 years (≥65 years for US participants), with no history of diagnosed cardiovascular disease, dementia, or major physical disabilities. Exclusion Criteria: Individuals were excluded if they had a diagnosed history of cardiovascular disease (including myocardial infarction or stroke), dementia, major physical disability, or a condition that would require aspirin use for secondary prevention. The ASPREE trial recruited 19,114 healthy older adults from Australia and the United States, most of them were with European ancestry. The ASPREE-XT follow-up study continues to monitor the cohort, focusing on the long-term health outcomes of these participants. The primary focus of the ASPREE project is the prevention and long-term effects of low-dose aspirin on chronic diseases associated with aging, including cardiovascular disease, cancer, dementia, and physical disability and death. The ASPREE-XT study expands the scope to investigate broader factors that influence healthy aging, including genetic predispositions, lifestyle choices, and environment. The initial hypothesis of the ASPREE trial was that daily low-dose aspirin would prolong disability-free survival in healthy older adults by reducing the risk of death, disability and dementia (with a composite primary outcome of disability-free survival). Secondary outcomes included cardiovascular disease, cancer and other related age-associated conditions. Following the trial’s conclusion, the ASPREE-XT study now seeks to understand whether aspirin confers longer-term benefits or risks in preventing chronic diseases, and is exploring other contributors and determinants of healthy aging. ## PI John J. McNeil (PI ASPREE) *Monash University, Australia* Anne Murray (co-PI ASPREE, ASPREE-XT, USA) *Berman Center for Outcomes and Clinical Research – Hennepin Healthcare Research Institute, USA* Andrew Chan, Co-PI ASPREE-XT, USA *Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School* Joanne Ryan, Co-PI ASPREE-XT, Australia *Monash University, Australia* ## Associated Datasets - [NG00067 - ADSP Umbrella](https://dss.niagads.org/datasets/ng00067/) This dataset includes sequencing data and harmonized phenotypes from cohorts sequenced by the Alzheimer’s Disease Sequencing Project and other AD and Related Dementia’s studies. Samples are processed using a common… [Learn more](https://dss.niagads.org/datasets/ng00067/) ## Associated Sample Sets - [snd10093 - ASPREE1 WGS](https://dss.niagads.org/sample-sets/snd10093/) 2,795 samples were sequenced at Kinghorn Centre for Clinical Genomics (KCCG) in Sydney, Australia, on Illumina HiSeqX. CRAM files were sent to GCAD for processing. A total of 2,735 samples… [Learn more](https://dss.niagads.org/sample-sets/snd10093/) ## Cohorts - [ASPrin in Reducing Events in the Elderly (ASPREE) & ASPREE-XT](https://dss.niagads.org/cohorts/asprin-in-reducing-events-in-the-elderly-aspree/) ASPREE is a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial investigating the effects of 100mg of daily low-dose aspirin in 19,114 healthy older adults, aged ≥70 years (≥65 years for US participants)… [Learn more](https://dss.niagads.org/cohorts/asprin-in-reducing-events-in-the-elderly-aspree/) ## Grants ASPREE was supported by U01AG029824 from the National Institute on Aging (NIA) and the National Cancer Institute (NCI) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), as well as grants 334047 and 1127060 from the National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia (NHMRC), and additional funding from Monash University and the Victorian Cancer Agency. ASPREE-XT is supported by U19AG062682 from NIA and NCI. ## Acknowledgement ### Acknowledgment statement for any data distributed by NIAGADS: Data for this study were prepared, archived, and distributed by the National Institute on Aging Alzheimer's Disease Data Storage Site (NIAGADS) at the University of Pennsylvania (U24-AG041689), funded by the National Institute on Aging. ### For investigators using ASPirin in Reducing Events in the Elderly data: ASPREE was supported by U01AG029824 from the National Institute on Aging (NIA) and the National Cancer Institute (NCI) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), as well as grants 334047 and 1127060 from the National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia (NHMRC), and additional funding from Monash University and the Victorian Cancer Agency. ASPREE-XT is supported by U19AG062682 from NIA and NCI. We thank the ASPREE/ASPREE-XT trial staff in Australia and the United States, the participants who volunteered for this trial, and the general practitioners and staff of the medical clinics who cared for the participants. ## Publications - McNeil JJ. **Effect of Aspirin on All-Cause Mortality in the Healthy Elderly.***The New England journal of medicine. 2018 Oct 18.*[PubMed link](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30221595/) - McNeil JJ. **Effect of Aspirin on Disability-free Survival in the Healthy Elderly.***The New England journal of medicine. 2018 Oct 18.*[PubMed link](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30221596/) - McNeil JJ. **Effect of Aspirin on Cardiovascular Events and Bleeding in the Healthy Elderly.***The New England journal of medicine. 2018 Oct 18.*[PubMed link](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30221597/)