Study: Pill cuts ovarian cancer risk long-term

TAKING the contraceptive pill provides women with “substantial long-term protection” against ovarian cancer, research suggests.

And at least 100,000 deaths from ovarian cancer have been prevented worldwide by the contraceptive pill over 50 years, according to an article published in The Lancet. It said that the longer the pill is used, the greater the reduction in the risk of developing the disease.

The researchers found that this protection lasted for more than 30 years after a woman had stopped taking the oral contraceptive. Taking it for 15 years halved the risk of ovarian cancer.