Does Abortion Cause Breast Cancer?
No. Although there has been a great deal of controversy on this topic, scientists have agreed that abortion does not cause breast cancer.The National Cancer Institute (NCI) held a workshop from February 24-26, 2003, bringing together a cross-section of the world’s leading experts, including epidemiologists, clinical researchers, and basic scientists, to discuss the scientific data on reproductive events in a woman's life that could affect her risk of developing breast cancer. They evaluated the research that has been done on this topic and concluded that abortion and miscarriage do not increase a woman’s risk of breast cancer.
Breast cancer is related to reproductive experiences such as age of puberty and age of motherhood, and for years anti-abortion activists have cited research showing a link between abortion and breast cancer. That research has been quoted by some politicians and political appointees as evidence that should be provided to women to discourage abortions. The NCI workshop was held as a result of this controversy, and despite political pressures it concluded that the research linking breast cancer and abortion is flawed and not as credible as research indicating that there is no link between breast cancer and either abortion or miscarriage.
The finding of this NCI workshop is also supported by, among others, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the American Cancer Society, as well as many women’s health advocacy organizations, including the Breast Cancer Coalition, and the National Women’s Health Network.
For more information on the NCI workshop and early reproductive events and breast cancer, please see: http://cancer.gov/cancerinfo/ere.
