Breast Cancer Awareness Month Tip #10: Take a break from oral contraceptives every 5 years

Having oral contraceptive pills could put you at risk of suffering from breast cancer.

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

I am a 24-year-old woman and have been taking oral contraceptive pills for a few years now. I recently heard that having these pills could lead to breast cancer. Is this true?

Yes, there is a link between breast cancer and having birth control pills for more than five years. It was found that a woman is at significant risk of suffering from breast cancer if she was on contraceptive pills for more than five years. Apart from that if a woman has started having oral contraceptives before the age of 40 and before menopause had a 50% higher chance of suffering from breast cancer.

This risk factor further increases if the lady has a family history of cancer. This link between breast cancer and oral contraceptive pills was thought to be due to the high levels of hormones these pills contained. Today oral contraceptives are more advanced and contain a fairly low amount of hormones, making it a much lesser risk.

What you can do about it

The very first line of prevention could be to use other forms of contraception, like the copper T, IUDs or even a condom. But if you have been prescribed oral contraceptive pills as medication for other ailments such as PCOD, PCOS, endometriosis etc. Consider talking to your doctor about the risk of breast cancer.

Some doctors suggest, taking a break from oral contraceptive pills every five years and then restarting the regimen. While this is not a standardized protocol of care, a number of practitioners do give it credence.

Apart from this, getting regualrly screened for the ailment along with breast self exams may also help.

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