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Taking aspirin every day can reduce the chance of developing or dying from bowel and stomach cancers, a review of all available evidence suggests, the BBC reports. 

And scientists predict if everyone aged 50 and above in the UK took the drug for 10 years, some 122,000 deaths could be prevented over two decades.

But they warn aspirin can cause internal bleeding and say medical advice must be sought before using it.

The Queen Mary University of London report is in the Annals of Oncology.

Scientists examined some 200 studies investigating the benefits and harms of taking aspirin - an area of continuing medical debate.

They found the drug reduced the number of cases and deaths from bowel, stomach and oesophageal cancer by some 30-40%.

There was weaker and more variable evidence that the drug reduced deaths from breast, prostate and lung cancer too.

And the study found people needed to take the drug for at least five years to see any benefits.

Prof Jack Cuzick, at Queen Mary University of London, who led the research, urged all healthy people aged 50 and above to consider taking a small dose (75mg) of the drug every day for a decade.