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Birth Control Pills Still Linked to Breast Cancer, Study Finds
Women who rely on birth control pills or contraceptive devices that release hormones face a small but significant increase in the risk for breast cancer, according to a large study published on Wednesday.
The study [DOI: 10.1056/NEJMoa1700732] [DX], which followed 1.8 million Danish women for more than a decade, upends widely held assumptions about modern contraceptives for younger generations of women. Many women have believed that newer hormonal contraceptives are much safer than those taken by their mothers or grandmothers, which had higher doses of estrogen.
The new paper estimated that for every 100,000 women, hormone contraceptive use causes an additional 13 breast cancer cases a year. That is, for every 100,000 women using hormonal birth control, there are 68 cases of breast cancer annually, compared with 55 cases a year among nonusers.
While a link had been established between birth control pills and breast cancer years ago, this study is the first to examine the risks associated with current formulations of birth control pills and devices in a large population.
The study found few differences in risk between the formulations; women cannot protect themselves by turning to implants or intrauterine devices that release a hormone directly into the uterus.
The research also suggests that the hormone progestin — widely used in today's birth control methods — may be raising breast cancer risk.
Also at NPR.
Previously: Study Links Hormonal Birth Control to Depression
Review Finds That Over-the-Counter Birth Control Pills Would be Safe for Teens
(Score: 2, Interesting) by Original on Sunday December 10 2017, @09:04PM (5 children)
Estrogen and progesterone stimulate breast and ovarian tissue, so the more cycles the tissue undergoes the higher risk of cancer. Yes the risk is lower than previously formulations but that's mainly due to lower dose with better drug delivery. Only a fool would expect the risk to go to absolute zero.
(Score: 3, Informative) by RamiK on Sunday December 10 2017, @11:16PM (4 children)
Wrong. Neither the lower dosages, the estrogen–progestin cocktails or just progestin meaningfully reduce the risk nor did the drug delivery mechanism::
That is, current methods all have about the same risks as the first high-dosage estrogen pills. The NY Times even quoted a doctor to explicitly state as much:
Which was actually a pretty restrained comment considering this is basically yet-another big-pharma scam along with COX-2 inhibitors and the new opioids. But hey, at least this one didn't cause heart-attacks, the opioids epidemic and a few drug-wars. Well, that we know of...
compiling...
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday December 11 2017, @04:00AM (3 children)
Right. Being able to have sex without becoming pregnant is such a big scam.</sarcasm> Especially given that abortion may not be legal much longer.
Is it any wonder some men who want a woman as a sexual partner are finding it impossible to find that kind of companionship?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday December 11 2017, @07:08AM (2 children)
I'm guessing he meant that the reformulation of the pills is a scam.
(Score: 2) by Grishnakh on Monday December 11 2017, @04:40PM (1 child)
Oh please, there were surely other reasons to reformulate the pills besides the breast cancer risk.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday December 11 2017, @07:19PM
Commercially, reformulation extended their patent protections while the dosage reduction lowered the price of manufacturing.
Medically, estrogen, progesterone and progestin bind to different receptor sites and raise or lower the risks for a whole list of conditions in different ways. They even interact with each other - in complex ways - by competing over some sites but not others. Progestin especially has been linked to heart attacks and the only reason it was allowed to remain on the market was the - now debunked - reduced risk for breast cancer.
Overall, old women should take estrogen and progesterone while younger women might want to risk estrogen contraceptive pills. But those are 40 years old - past their patents - courses so the drug companies are obstructing the FDA.