Consuming Oral Contraceptive Pills can increase the risk of Breast Cancer in Women; What study says

A recent study found that the use of all hormonal contraceptives is marginally related to an increased risk of breast cancer. Regardless of the method of delivery, the study, which was published in the journal PLOS Medicine, discovered a relative increase in breast cancer risk of 20 to 30% related to both combination and progestogen-only contraceptives.

There is limited information about the impact of progestogen-only contraceptives, the researchers noted, although the use of combined oral contraceptives, which contain both estrogen and progestogen hormones, has previously been linked to a slight increase in the risk of breast cancer.

What is Oral Contraceptive

Oral contraceptives (birth control pills) are hormonally-rich drugs that are taken internally to prevent conception. Inhibiting ovulation and stopping sperm from entering the cervix are two ways by which they prevent pregnancy.

The synthetic forms of the feminine hormones progesterone and estrogen are included in the type of oral contraceptive that is by far the most often prescribed one in the United States. This form of birth control pill is commonly referred to as a combination oral contraceptive. Another type of oral contraceptive, known as the micro pill, includes solely progestin, a synthetic counterpart of progesterone.

44% Women with Breast Cancer had consumed contraceptive

The Clinical Practice Research Datalink (CPRD), a primary care database in the UK, was used by the researchers to analyze data on 9,498 women under 50 who were diagnosed with invasive breast cancer between 1996 and 2017 as well as data on 18,171 closely matched controls. In general, 44% of breast cancer survivors and 39% of the matched controls had a prescription for a hormonal contraceptive, with roughly 50% of those prescriptions being for progestogen-only medications.

What researchers said 

Kirstin Pirie from the University of Oxford said, “These findings suggest that current or recent use of all types of progestogen-only contraceptives is associated with a slight increase in breast cancer risk, similar to that associated with the use of combined oral contraceptives. Given that the underlying risk of breast cancer increases with advancing age, the absolute excess risk associated with use of either type of oral contraceptive will be smaller in women who use it at younger rather than at older ages.”