A new study linking one form of contraception to ‘brain growths’ in women should not cause and panic or drama in Ireland, an HSE women’s health advisor has said.
It was conducted by French researchers who analysed medical data gathered between 2011 and 2018 to see if there was any correlation between contraceptive hormones and brain cancer.
They found progestogens, which are used to treat endometriosis and as a contraceptive, are linked to meningiomas from prolonged use.
On Late Breakfast today, author and HSE adviser Deidre Lundy said the drug is rarely used in Ireland and “all the typical forms of contraception” used here are “perfectly safe”.
Rare
Dr Lundy said the study that linked brain growths to contraceptives was not of "high quality".
“Meningiomas are very rare and when they occur you have to keep an eye on them but they’re not cancer, they are growths in the brain that give you problems,” she said.
“They found that if a person decides to stay on the injectable progestogen for over a year, there might be a small connection with a future risk of being diagnosed with one of these brain growths.”
Birth control pills. Image: Richard B. LevineDr Lundy said this drug is rarely used in Ireland anyway.
“They found that contraceptives the majority of Irish people use, there was no connection [to cancer], in things like HRT and stuff like that too," she said.
“To say contraceptive hormones can do A, B, and C is a lie – it was really only one specific hormone that could.”
Media scares
Dr Lundy said similar scares have been peddled by the media over contraception down through the years.
“I remember in 1995 I was going about my business and one of the papers in Ireland ran a headline that said ‘use of the contraceptive pill doubles the risk of heart attack,’” she said.
“It went from one in a million to two in a million, it was absolute rubbish – but there were thousands of people pregnant that month.
“They came in droves stopping their contraception with no provision – It was irresponsible journalism.”
No concerns
Dr Lundy said the French study is “not going to change our practice” when it comes to contraceptive use.
“All the typical forms of contraception are perfectly safe and you should not stop them,” she said.
“If you have concerns, bring them up the next time you’re at the doctor.
"There is no panic, no drama, no trouble here.”
A UN report released in 2022 found some 66% of Irish women aged between 18-45 used contraception in Ireland – the seventh highest rate of use worldwide.
Main image: Woman recovering in a hospital room bed. Image: Ken Gillespie Photography / Alamy Stock Photo
