'Contraceptives could keep breast cancer at bay'

Women, who have a family history of breast cancer, could prevent it by taking contraceptive pills, a new research said.

Young women, who have a family history of breast cancer, could substantially reduce their risk of developing the disease by taking the contraceptive pill, according to new research.

The study of some 2,000 women with a genetic mutation placing them at high risk of developing breast cancer showed they were about four times less likely to contract the disease, if they used the pill, lead Australian researcher Professor John Hopper said on Thursday.

The research found that women with the BRCA1 genetic mutation, and therefore a 40 to 80 per cent chance of developing breast cancer, reduced their risk to 10 to 20 per cent, if they used oral contraceptives.

The study surveyed women in Australia, the United States and Canada found that the results were the same in each country.

Researchers say they don't understand how the hormones present in the pill interact in the body to lessen the risk of the cancer but they are supported by a previous study, which found that use of the pill reduced the risk of ovarian cancer.

The finding has surprised researchers at the University of Melbourne, who had presumed the pill would have a harmful influence.

While Hopper is cautious about the findings, he said they could have major implications for those women whose genetic make-up places them at high-risk of developing breast or ovarian cancer and currently have no other means of preventing the disease except surgery.