Are Oral Contraceptives Safe for Women with Family Histories of Breast Cancer?

Many women with relatives who have had breast cancer are concerned that using hormonal contraception might further raise their risk for this common malignancy. Researchers from the World Health Organization identified 10 case-control or cohort studies and 1 pooled analysis in which investigators compared breast cancer risk in oral contraceptive (OC) users and nonusers with family histories of the disease.

Seven studies and the pooled analysis showed no association between OC use and invasive breast cancer among women with family histories of the disease. One study noted that OC use (compared with never use) among women with positive family histories was not associated with excess risk for ductal carcinoma in situ. Although three studies show…