Does the combined oral contraceptive pill (OCP) cause breast cancer?
Breast cancer is relatively uncommon among young women. Reproductive factors, including nulliparity and delaying first full-term birth, increase risk, suggesting a hormonal link to breast cancer. A combined analysis of the individual data from 54 epidemiological studies was published in 1996. This showed that current combined OCP users have a 1.5-fold higher breast cancer risk which lasts for up to ten years after cessation of combined OCP use. Thus, the higher risk is experienced only at a younger age when breast cancer is rare. (The risk of acquiring breast cancer by age 25 is 1/27,000). It remains unclear whether the small increase in breast cancer risk associated with combined OCP use is due to OCP exposure itself, or to delaying the first full-term birth, which is most commonly achieved by means of oral contraception.
Related Questions
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- Is the breast cancer risk associated with combined oral contraceptive pill (OCP) use sufficient to warrant a change in prescribing habits?
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