Oral contraceptive (long term effects)

25 year follow-up of cohort of 46000 women from Royal College of General Practitioners' oral contraception study

• 25 year cohort study
• data from 46000 women
• the mortality in women who had ever used the pill was compared with never use, allowing for use and time elapsed since last use
• the study found that mortality from cerebrovascular and circulatory disease was greater in current and recent pill users. The mortality from colon and ovarian cancer was lower in current and recent pill users. After 10 years or more more after cessation of pill use, the mortality in never users and past users was similar.

Collaborative Group on Hormonal Factors in Breast Cancer

• collaborative reanalysis of individual data on 53 297 women with breast cancer and 100 239 women without breast cancer from 54 epidemiological studies
• found a slight increase in breast cancer in current and recent pill users but no excess deaths 10 years after cessation

Reference:

• BMJ (1999), 318, 96-100.
• Lancet (1996), 347, 1713-27.