The case for preventing ovarian cancer.

摘要

In today's Lancet, Valerie Beral and colleagues provide a definitive analysis of the association between oral contraceptives and ovarian cancer. Although the findings are not unexpected, this study is impressive and compelling. It pools worldwide data from 45 epidemiological studies and shows beyond doubt that ovarian cancers can be prevented by the long-term use of different generations of oral contraceptives. Moreover, this substantial protection begins quickly, and increases with increasing duration of use.