Oral contraceptive pills protect against ovarian and endometrial cancer


Date:
December 17, 2020
Source:
Uppsala University
Summary:
A comprehensive study involving more than 250,000 women, shows that
oral contraceptive use protects against ovarian and endometrial
cancer. The protective effect remains for several decades after
discontinuing the use.



FULL STORY ==========================================================================
A comprehensive study from Uppsala University, involving more than 250,000 women, shows that oral contraceptive use protects against ovarian and endometrial cancer. The protective effect remains for several decades
after discontinuing the use. The study is published in the journal
Cancer Research.


========================================================================== Ovarian and endometrial cancer are among the most common gynaecological cancers, with a lifetime risk of just over 2 per cent. Endometrial cancer
is slightly more common but as it has clearer symptoms and is therefore
often detected at an early stage, the mortality rate is low. However,
ovarian cancer is among the deadliest cancers, since it is often not
detected until it has already spread to other parts of the body.

The first oral contraceptive pill was approved already in the 1960s, and
80 per cent of all women in Western Europe have used oral contraceptives
at some point in their life. Oral contraceptives include oestrogen and progestin, which are synthetic forms of the female sex hormones. The
oestrogen and progestin in oral contraceptives prevent ovulation and
thereby protect against pregnancy.

In the current study, the scientists compared the incidence of breast,
ovarian and endometrial cancers between women that had used oral
contraceptive pills and never users.

"It was clear that women who had used oral contraceptive pills had a much
lower risk of developing both ovarian and endometrial cancer. Fifteen
years after discontinuing with oral contraceptives, the risk was about
50 per cent lower.

However, a decreased risk was still detected up to 30-35 years after discontinuation," says AAsa Johansson at the Department of Immunology,
Genetics and Pathology, Uppsala University, one of the leading researchers behind the study.

However, oral contraceptive pills have previously been associated with
an increased risk of breast cancer.

"Surprisingly, we only found a small increased risk of breast cancer
among oral contraceptive users, and the increased risk disappeared within
a few years after discontinuation," says Johansson. "Our results suggest
that the lifetime risk of breast cancer might not differ between ever and
never users, even if there is an increased short-term risk." The results
from the current study are important, since oral contraceptive use has
commonly been associated with side effects such as deep vein thrombosis
and breast cancer.

"In addition to protecting against pregnancy, we have shown that oral contraceptive pills also have other positive effects. Our results can
enable women and physicians to make more informed decisions about which
women should use oral contraceptive pills," says Therese Johansson,
one of the PhD students behind the study.


========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by Uppsala_University. Original written
by Linda Koffmar.

Note: Content may be edited for style and length.


========================================================================== Journal Reference:
1. Karlsson T, Johansson T, Ho"glund T, Ek W, Johansson
AA. Time-dependent
effects of oral contraceptive use on breast, ovarian and endometrial
cancers. Cancer Research, 2020 DOI: 10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-20-2476 ==========================================================================

Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/12/201217090406.htm

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