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Older generation birth-control pills may have significantly
increased breast cancer risk among women with a family history of the
disease.
In a study of 426 families, investigators found that
oral contraceptive use tripled breast
cancer risk among women with sisters or mothers who had the
disease.
The risk was confined to women who used "the
pill" prior to 1975.
Since then, birth control pills have evolved to include
lower doses of estrogen and progestin, which may make them safer in terms
of breast cancer, researchers suggest, although this will likely not be
definitively known for years to come.
The breast cancer link was strongest among women
with five or more cases of breast or ovarian cancer in their families.
In these women, birth control pill use was linked to an 11-fold increase
in breast cancer risk.
An editorial accompanying the study notes that "the
use of oral contraceptives needs to be considered on an individual basis,"
taking into account all of a woman's health concerns.
The Journal of the
American Medical Association October 11, 2000;284:1791-1798, 1837-1838
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