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Oral Contraceptives Associated with Reduced Cardiovascular and Cancer Risks: Presented at ASRM

By Andrew Bowser

PHILADELPHIA, PA -- October 21, 2004 -- Cardiovascular disease and certain types of cancer may be less common among older women who have taken contraceptives, researchers said here during two sessions at the Annual Meeting of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine.

Notably, there was an 8% risk reduction for any cardiovascular disease among women reporting oral contraceptive use, according to investigator Rahi Victory, MD, Fellow, Division of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility at Wayne State University, Detroit, Michigan.

Women with a history of oral contraceptive use also had a decreased risk of other cardiovascular outcomes, such as hypercholesterolemia, angina, myocardial infarction, peripheral vascular disease, and transient ischemic attack, he said.

"These data suggest benefits of oral contraceptives in the prevention of cardiovascular disease, an important finding that contravenes previous studies on oral contraceptive use," Dr. Victory said.

Other researchers have suggested oral contraceptives actually increase the risk of cardiovascular disease, but their studies had design limitations, including the use of case control methodology and small sample size, Dr. Victory said in a press conference here October 20th.

These latest findings come from an analysis of data on 161,809 women at the time they were enrolled in the Women's Health Initiative (WHI), a large, longitudinal study best known for highlighting potential risks associated with hormone replacement therapy.

The women, who were between the ages of 50 to 79 years at time of enrollment in WHI, filled out a variety of questionnaires on medical history, including history of duration of contraceptive use.

In a separate analysis of the WHI database, Dr. Victory and her Wayne State colleagues found that oral contraceptive use was associated with a reduced risk of ovarian and endometrial cancer, findings that have been corroborated by earlier studies.*

Dr. Victory and colleagues found that women reporting contraceptive use had significantly reduced risk of ovarian and endometrial cancer (odds ratios of 0.81 and 0.82, respectively). There was no association between oral contraceptive use and risk of breast, cervix, colon or bladder cancer.


* JAMA. 1983 Mar 25;249(12):1596-9. JAMA 1987; 257(6):796–800. N Engl J Med 1987; 316:650–655. Obstet and Gynecol 1992; 80(4):708–714. N Engl J Med 1998; 339(7):424–428.


[Presentation titles: "Adverse cardiovascular disease outcomes are reduced in women with a history of oral contraceptive use: Results from the Women's Health Initiative Database." Abstract O-130. "Reduced cancer risks in oral contraceptive users: Results from the Women's Health Initiative. Abstract O-259]

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