During the fall of 2010 headlines like "Aspirin a day helps to keep cancer at bay, say scientists" hit the world media. It appeared that all of these were inspired by a single publication in The Lancet. This research article shows that regular administration of small doses of aspirin reduces the mortality from certain types of cancer (like the bowel, lung and prostate cancers). In the present paper, we consider this phenomenon as well. The widespread reaction of the public and media to these headlines has persuaded us to write this paper without delay.