Oral contraceptives and survival in breast cancer patients aged 20 to 54 years

Katrina F Trivers; Marilie D Gammon; Page E Abrahamson; Mary Jo Lund; Elaine W Flagg; Patricia G Moorman; Jay S Kaufman; Jianwen Cai; Peggy L Porter; Louise A Brinton; J William Eley; Ralph J Coates

doi:10.1158/1055-9965.EPI-07-0053

General Gynecology · Breast Health

Oral contraceptives and survival in breast cancer patients aged 20 to 54 years

Trivers KF, Gammon MD, Abrahamson PE, Lund MJ, Flagg EW, Moorman PG, Kaufman JS, Cai J, Porter PL, Brinton LA, Eley JW, Coates RJ

Published September 15, 2007 Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention : a Publication of the American Association for Cancer Research, Cosponsored by the American Society of Preventive Oncology, 16(9), 1822-1827

DOI 10.1158/1055-9965.EPI-07-0053 PMID 17855700

Abstract

Recent oral contraceptive (OC) use is associated with modestly higher breast cancer incidence among younger women, but its impact on survival is unclear. This study examined the relationship between OC use before breast cancer diagnosis and survival. A population-based sample of 1,264 women aged 20 to 54 years with a first primary invasive breast cancer during 1990 to 1992 were followed up for 8 to 10 years. OC and covariate data were obtained by interviews conducted shortly after diagnosis and from medial records. All-cause mortality was ascertained through the National Death Index (n = 292 deaths). Ageand income-adjusted hazard ratios (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) were estimated by Cox regression methods. All-cause mortality was not associated with ever use of OCs or duration of use. Compared with nonusers, mortality estimates were elevated among women who were using OCs at diagnosis or stopped use in the previous year (HR, 1.57; 95% CI, 0.95-2.61). The HR for use of high-dose estrogen pills within 5 years before diagnosis was double that of nonusers (HR, 2.39; 95% CI, 1.29-4.41) or, if the most recent pill included the progestin levonorgestrel, compared with nonusers (HR, 2.01; 95% CI, 1.03-3.91). Because subgroup estimates were based on small numbers of OC users, these results should be cautiously interpreted. Overall, most aspects of OC use did not seem to influence survival, although there is limited evidence that OC use just before diagnosis, particularly use of some pill types, may negatively impact survival in breast cancer patients aged 20 to 54 years.

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Beaber EF et al., 2014 Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev Free full text on PubMed Central

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General Gynecology › Breast Health › Breast Cancer Risk · Contraception › Oral Contraceptives › Cancer Risk

Katrina F Trivers, Marilie D Gammon, Page E Abrahamson, Patricia G Moorman, Jay S Kaufman, Jianwen Cai, Peggy L Porter, Louise A Brinton, Ralph J Coates, J William Eley, Elaine W Flagg, Mary Jo Lund

K Trivers, M Gammon, P Abrahamson, Pat Moorman, Trish Moorman, P Moorman, J Kaufman, J Cai, Margaret Porter, P Porter, L Brinton, R Coates, E Flagg, M Lund

PMID 17855700 17855700 DOI 10.1158/1055-9965.EPI-07-0053 10.1158/1055-9965.EPI-07-0053 Trivers et al. 2007, Trivers 2007

Cite this article

Trivers, K. F., Gammon, M. D., Abrahamson, P. E., Lund, M. J., Flagg, E. W., Moorman, P. G., Kaufman, J. S., Cai, J., Porter, P. L., Brinton, L. A., Eley, J. W., & Coates, R. J. (2007). Oral contraceptives and survival in breast cancer patients aged 20 to 54 years. Cancer epidemiology, biomarkers & prevention : a publication of the American Association for Cancer Research, cosponsored by the American Society of Preventive Oncology, 16(9), 1822-1827. https://doi.org/10.1158/1055-9965.EPI-07-0053

Keywords

Contraceptives, Oral