No Connection Between Breast Cancer and the Pill at Her Active Life

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No Connection Between Breast Cancer and the Pill

Posted October 16, 2007 at 03:00 PM by Katie Drummond

Section: Her Health, Her News

Birth Control Pill Women on the birth control who worried about an increased risk of breast cancer can breathe a little easier.

A new study published in the journal Obstetrics and Gynecology has found that there is no connection between the death rate among breast cancer patients and their use of oral contraceptives.

Dr. Herbert R. Peterson, one of the authors of the study, called the results “broadly reassuring” for women concerned about taking the pill to prevent pregnancy or regulate hormonal imbalances.

According to Peterson, worries first cropped up about a possible link between breast cancer and the pill in 1996, when an analysis of 54 studies found that there seemed to be a higher rate of diagnosis among women who were using oral contraceptives. However, researchers now think that this result may have more to do with demographics: women on the pill typically have better access to quality health care, making breast cancer detection more common.

This new study looked around 4,000 women between 20 and 54 who had been diagnosed with breast cancer, and actually found that those using oral contraceptives had a 10% lower mortality rate, though researchers say this could be due to chance. With a 2002 study showing similar results, Peterson said that women can be confident about using the pill.

“There are now dozens and dozens of studies looking at the pill and breast cancer risk, and when you pull them all together they’re broadly reassuring, both in terms of the risk and in terms of the risk of mortality,” he said.

While the study applies to women who have yet to hit menopause, more research needs to be done to ensure the safety of the pill for older women, given the increased risk of breast cancer identified in women taking hormone replacement therapy.