By MARIA CHENG, AP Medical Writer
Women taking the birth control pill have a slightly higher risk of cervical cancer, but that risk disappears a decade after they stop taking it, scientists say.
International researchers reported Friday in the British medical journal The Lancet that women who took the pill for at least five years had nearly double the cervical cancer risk of women who had never taken the pill.
But that risk is small and outweighed by the fact that the pill reduces the threat of other forms of cancer, The Lancet report said.
In developed countries, women up to the age of 50 who have never used oral contraceptives have a 3.8 in 1,000 risk of developing cervical cancer. That rises slightly to 4 in 1,000 for women who use the pill for at least five years, and 4.5 in 1,000 for those who use it for a decade.
In developing countries, taking oral contraceptives raises the risk of cervical cancer from 7.3 in 1,000 to 8.3 in 1,000.
"The bottom line is that this is a very small risk," said Dr. Debbie Saslow, director of breast and gynecological cancer at the American Cancer Society. Saslow was not linked to the study.
Cervical cancer cases typically affect women in their 30s — when many may be on the pill.
source: Associated Press and
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