The Pill and Ovarian Cancer Prevention

Extract

Several decades ago, researchers observed a protective association between oral contraceptives (OCs) and ovarian cancer. Many observational studies across largely unselected populations using “the pill” in different patterns and formulations have replicated this finding, with many finding the risk reduced by up to half, depending on duration of use. OCs are also widely believed to reduce risk of endometrial cancer and possibly colorectal cancer.

Although U.S. women have greater access to OCs now than ever before—owing to a controversial Affordable Care Act provision requiring insurance companies to provide contraception for free—many women opt for birth control with intrauterine devices and implants, especially after a large study published last May in the New England Journal of Medicine found that they prevented pregnancy better than OCs.

And taking the pill just to prevent ovarian cancer is not something major national cancer and gynecology organizations recommend, even though most state that OC use reduces the risk of ovarian cancer. “The choice to use OCs should not be made solely for ovarian cancer prevention,” the Society of Gynecologic Oncology said in a statement. Meanwhile, specific guideline-making bodies, such as the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, have not made the issue a priority.