Cancer link claimed in ovary fertility drugs

http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2012/apr/24/cancer-link-ovary-fertility-drugs


Leukaemia blood cells. Around 44,000 cycles of fertility treatment are carried out in the UK each year, but the number of children who develop leukaemia is very small. Photograph: Steve Gschmeissner/Corbis

French researchers say they have for the first time found a link between drugs given to stimulate the ovaries of women before they have fertility treatment and an increased risk of leukaemia in their children.

Initial findings, presented at a conference in London, found that the use of ovarian stimulation drugs was associated with more than double (2.6 fold) the risk of a child developing the most common form of childhood leukaemia – called acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL). They had a 2.3 fold risk of developing a rare cancer, acute myeloid leukaemia.

There was also an increased risk for the children of women who had struggled for more than a year to become pregnant and then conceived naturally without the help of drugs. They were 50% more likely to develop ALL – which may suggest that the issue is not just about drugs but may also be connected with lower fertility. The study found no link between the fertility procedures themselves and leukaemia.

Around 44,000 cycles of fertility treatment are carried out in the UK every year, but the actual numbers of children who develop leukaemia is very small – there are 400 cases a year, of whom 300 are ALL.