Wednesday, April 07, 2004
Link between abortion and breast cancer
A link between abortion and breast cancer has received growing international attention in recent years. Some researchers believe that women who’ve had abortions are up to 50 percent more likely to develop breast cancer than women who haven’t. One, Chris Kahlenborn MD, says the risk can get even higher once age of the mother and the fetus is taken into account. If you’re under 18, he warns, your risk of developing breast cancer rises by 150 percent. If you’re under 18 and the fetus is more than nine weeks old when it is aborted, your chances of developing breast cancer later in life rise by a massive 800 percent.
This contention took a severe knock in the last week in an article in The Lancet. Valerie Beral of Oxford University said results from previous studies that concluded there was a link were based on unreliable data and poor research, and that having an abortion or miscarriage does not increase a women's risk of suffering from breast cancer later in life.
Beral re-analysed data from 53 studies in 16 countries to show there was no link between the most common cancer in women and a terminated pregnancy.
However, a US expert on the topic, Dr. Joel Brind, has come out highly indignant at the Lancet article, which he says is easily refuted.
Brind says the Beral report was "very badly done" and "very vulnerable." He says Beral has for years focused research on attempting to deny a link between abortion and breast cancer. He says her team excluded studies which did not suit their agenda, but failed to provide a compelling reason for denying the validity of the rejected studies.
Overall, said Brind, the Beral study is "a horrible piece of work." He says he will be submitting a letter to the editor of the Lancet pointing out the "very misleading" aspects.
A link between abortion and breast cancer has received growing international attention in recent years. Some researchers believe that women who’ve had abortions are up to 50 percent more likely to develop breast cancer than women who haven’t. One, Chris Kahlenborn MD, says the risk can get even higher once age of the mother and the fetus is taken into account. If you’re under 18, he warns, your risk of developing breast cancer rises by 150 percent. If you’re under 18 and the fetus is more than nine weeks old when it is aborted, your chances of developing breast cancer later in life rise by a massive 800 percent.
This contention took a severe knock in the last week in an article in The Lancet. Valerie Beral of Oxford University said results from previous studies that concluded there was a link were based on unreliable data and poor research, and that having an abortion or miscarriage does not increase a women's risk of suffering from breast cancer later in life.
Beral re-analysed data from 53 studies in 16 countries to show there was no link between the most common cancer in women and a terminated pregnancy.
However, a US expert on the topic, Dr. Joel Brind, has come out highly indignant at the Lancet article, which he says is easily refuted.
Brind says the Beral report was "very badly done" and "very vulnerable." He says Beral has for years focused research on attempting to deny a link between abortion and breast cancer. He says her team excluded studies which did not suit their agenda, but failed to provide a compelling reason for denying the validity of the rejected studies.
Overall, said Brind, the Beral study is "a horrible piece of work." He says he will be submitting a letter to the editor of the Lancet pointing out the "very misleading" aspects.
