Birth-Control Pills Cut Cancer, Lengthen Women’s Lives in Study
By Michelle Fay Cortez
March 12 (Bloomberg) -- Birth-control pills may lead to longer lives for women, according to a 40-year study that showed users were less likely to die of heart disease, cancer or a range of other medical ailments.
The British report eases concern from early studies that found women who used the contraceptives may be at higher risk of cancer or dying from strokes, particularly those who smoke, the researchers said. The study tracked 46,112 women from throughout the U.K. starting in 1968. Women who took the pill were 12 percent less likely to die from any cause during the study, according to the report in the British Medical Journal.
The findings varied depending on age, though the length of time on the pill had no significant impact, the researchers said. The risk of death was slightly higher in women under age 45 who were current or recent users, though it abated after 10 years. By age 50, the benefits outweighed the risks. Overall, there were 52 fewer deaths than expected for every 100,000 women taking the pill each year, the researchers estimated.
“Our results do not suggest a persisting or emerging mortality risk over time among women who have used oral contraceptives,” said researchers led by Philip Hannaford from the University of Aberdeen in Scotland. “Many women, especially those who used the first generation of oral contraceptives many years ago, are likely to be reassured by our results.”
The risks may be different with the oral contraceptives that are widely used now, particularly if women start taking them earlier or use them for longer, the researchers said.
Women on the pill did have higher rates of violent and accidental death, though the researchers said they couldn’t explain the findings. The risk was seen in earlier analyses of the data, and has persisted through the years, they said.
The research was funded by the Royal College of General Practitioners, Medical Research Council, Imperial Cancer Research Fund, British Heart Foundation, Cruden Foundation, and units of Bayer AG, Pfizer Inc. and Johnson & Johnson. Bayer, of Leverkusen, Germany, New York-based Pfizer and New Brunswick, New Jersey-based Johnson & Johnson all make contraceptive pills.
