Aspirin is an old and venerable medication. The antipyretic and analgesic effects of willow bark were known to the ancient Greeks, Assyrians, and Egyptians. Slowly, over centuries, the responsible compound was isolated and purified.1 The first sample of pure acetylsalicylic acid was produced in Germany in 1897 and marketed in 1899 under the trademark of Aspirin, initially targeting treatment of pain in rheumatism.2 With increasing clinical experience in the 1900s came observations of both harm, specifically bleeding, and benefit, specifically reductions in coronary events.