Cancer and the Pill

In 2007 the World Health Organization determined that oral contraceptives were Group I carcinogens, which are capable of causing several cancers in women, including breast cancer. Unfortunately their findings have yet to be published in mainstream media, therefore many doctors aren’t aware of the risks and continue to prescribe oral contraceptives to their patients.

A new study widens this risk to include African-American women. Scientists at Boston University School of Medicine followed 53,848 African-American women for an average of 12 years, beginning in 1995. They found 789 cases of breast cancer. Of these cases, the number of estrogen receptor-negative cases was 65% greater in women who had used the pill. Such breast cancers have a worse prognosis than estrogen receptor-positive tumors. The risk for breast cancer was greatest in women who had used the pill within five years and whose use was greater than ten years.

Funding for the study was provided by the National Cancer Institute.

What do you think about this? If this is a proven study, shouldn't more people be aware of the potential risks?

References

Oral Contraceptive Use and Estrogen/Progesterone Receptor–Negative Breast Cancer among African American Women: http://cebp.aacrjournals.org/content/19/8/2073.full.pdf+html

23 Year Old Woman Pregnant Seven Times In Five Years, Despite Using Contraception

A mother of 3, Gemma Potter, has gotten pregnant 7 different times in five years despite using the pill, condoms, the coil, progestogen injections, and an implant. She is currently expecting her fourth child (she's had 3 miscarriages and 1 ectopic pregnancy). Doctors have been unable to pinpoint the cause of her extreme fertility.

Here at EFP, we found this article very interesting and couldn't help but ask ourselves if using natural contraception instead of the hormonal options she used, would have ended up in 7 unwanted pregnancies. Although her case may be rare and her cycles irregular, perhaps practicing fertility awareness could have prevented the pregnancies if she abstained from intercourse on her fertile days. What do you think?

You can read the full article here:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/12/20/gemma-potter-pregnant-_n_1160098.html

Increased Blood Clot Risk on the Pill

More bad press for the pill, this time the focus is on the combined oral contraceptives - the kind containing both the hormones oestrogens and progestin. If the woman taking these pills has a common vein malfunction (experienced by a quarter of the population), her risk of blot clots is increased significantly.

'Up to 25% of the healthy population has a narrowing, known as stenosis, in the left common iliac vein (one of two major veins deep in the pelvis that return blood from the lower body to the heart), according to Dr Lawrence Hofmann and his colleagues at Stanford University School of Medicine.

In their study, published in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, having a "left common iliac vein stenosis" and taking so-called combined oral contraceptives - the kind containing both the hormones oestrogens and progestin - multiplied a woman's risk of deep vein thrombosis nearly 18 times compared to women with neither risk factor.

Sometimes known as "economy class syndrome", a deep vein thrombosis is a blood clot - often formed in veins of the lower legs – which is potentially dangerous because it can travel to the heart and lungs and cause serious harm.

Some 12 million women in the US use the "combined" form of birth control pill, which is already known to increase a woman's risk of blood clots.

In general, the researchers note, among every 10,000 young women who are not taking oral contraceptives, about one to three will have a deep vein thrombosis every year. For young women who've been taking the Pill for a year, that risk goes up six-fold.'

You can read the full story here.

US Keeps Restrictions on the Pill

The United States has rejected a drug company's request to allow the morning-after pill (emergency contraception) available over the counter to women of all ages. Women under 17 will be required to have a prescription in order to obtain the pill whereas women over 17 must ask a pharmacist for it. (Read the full news story here)

This has been a controversial decision in the opinion of both pro-life and pro-choice supporters. What do you think about the decision? Would allowing women under 17 to access the pill avoid unwanted pregnancies or encourage risky behavior? Should emergency contraception be restricted at all?

Remember, you can always voice your opinion and thoughts on our forum!

Morning-After Pill Available for Free by Phone in UK

In preparation for the holiday season when health services may be closed, the British Pregnancy Advisory Service (BPAS) have implemented a new service which allows women to order the morning after pill, for free, over the telephone.

The BPAS believes this will help prevent unwanted pregnancies and/or abortions during the festive season by removing the potentially embarrassing face-to-face contact women must go through when asking for the pill in public.

This precautionary measure taken by the BPAS has been criticized by the pro-life charity 'life', who believe it encourages risky behaviour and bad decisions.

You can read the full story here.

What are your thoughts? Do you think ordering the morning after pill over the phone is a step in the right or wrong direction? Join the discussion on our forum!

Have you heard of Vegan Condoms?!

Who says going 'green' has to stop in the bedroom? You can incorporate animal-friendly, chemical-free products in areas of your house, including your bedroom!

Using vegan condoms is one of the easiest ways to make sure your intimate experiences are not only pleasurable, but also great for the environment too!

Small efforts such as changing the brand of your condoms can make a big impact if the action is carried out by enough people!

All Condomi condoms are free of animal derivatives and meet or surpass all global and domestic quality accreditation, making them one of the best choices for vegan condoms on the market today. So, as well as being environmentally-friendly, condomi condoms are guaranteed to protect against conception as well as sexually transmitted diseases such as the HIV virus.

Vegan condoms are a great way to protect against unwanted pregnancies during the fertile days of your cycle if your practicing natural contraception. Using contraceptive monitors, such as cyclotest 2 plus, is a great way to identify those few days when extra protection is needed to avoid conception!

Your Preferred Fertility Monitor

Here at Ethical Family Planning, we're interested in hearing about your preferences when it comes to fertility monitors. Cyclotest Baby is many women's favorite for its affordability and reliability. Other users prefer Babycomp for its long life on the market. We want to hear from you - what monitor has treated you well and helped achieve your pregnancy goals?