Massive Study Finds the Pill Significantly Increases Cancer Risk if Used more than Eight Years

By Meg Jalsevac

BRITAIN, September 13, 2007, (LifeSiteNews.com) - A new study conducted by individuals at the University of Aberdeen and recently published in the British Medical Journal claims to reassure women that taking oral contraceptives will, in fact, reduce their risk of getting cancer.  News services throughout the world are touting the 'medical breakthrough' that supposedly shows that "the cancer benefits of oral contraception outweigh the risks."

In reality, the true facts of the study portray a very different result for the millions of women worldwide who use oral birth control.  According to the TimesOnline, the British study reportedly found that, depending on the dataset, the overall risk of cancer was anywhere from 3 to 12% lower for women who "took the Pill for less than eight years."  However, for women who took the pill for over 8 years - the increased risk of cancer rose by 22%. 

Despite these conflicting results, research leader Professor Philip Hannaford seized on the opportunity to proffer a false assurance to women saying, "These results show that, in this UK cohort, the contraceptive Pill was not associated with an overall increased risk of any cancer; indeed it may produce an important net public health gain."

The UK study used records compiled by the Royal College of Physicians since 1968.  The data was gathered form 1,400 doctors who provided details on both women who were and were not taking the Pill.  A total of 46,000 women of an average age of 29 participated in the study.  All the women involved were either married or involved in a stable relationship.

While authors of the study are confident that "many women, especially those who used the first generation of oral contraceptives many years ago, are likely to be reassured by our results," many women are expressing the exact opposite reaction.

Commenters on the TimesOnline and the Globe and Mail websites were almost unanimously skeptical of the study and the supposed good news that it brought.

One commenter posting under the name YHS BC from Vancouver, Canada referred to the study saying, "That's like saying smoking only causes cancer if you do it for more than eight years. Is there something magical that occurs after eight years which suddenly clicks in and causes cells to deteriorate and become cancerous?"

While the study claimed that "the average Pill user in the research took the contraceptive for 44 months" Another online commenter questioned how reassuring the study results are considering that "between 18 and 40, [women] could very easily have been on the pill for 18 years.....anyone want to talk cancer risk now?"

This new study comes on the heals of a Norwegian study conducted earlier this year that reported that women who take the Pill and receive Hormone Replacement Therapy could be more than doubling their risk of developing breast cancer.  Hormone Replacement Therapy is a common treatment for the symptoms of menopause.

As previously reported by LifeSiteNews.com, further studies have also reported that the birth control pill can be the cause of a greatly increased risk of stroke, heart attack, blood clots and other serious health risks.

Read the entire TimesOnline article:
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/...