TREATMENT FOR INFERTILITY AND RISK OF INVASIVE EPITHELIAL OVARIAN-CANCER

The relationship between the use of fertility drugs and the risk of ov arian cancer was analysed using data from an Italian case-control stud y. The study comprised 971 women below the age of 75 years with histol ogically confirmed invasive epithelial ovarian cancer diagnosed within the year before the interview. The controls were 2758 women admitted to the same network of hospitals where the cases of ovarian cancer had been identified. Five cases (0.5%) and 11 controls (0.4%) reported us e of fertility drugs. In comparison with women who had never used fert ility drugs, the multivariate odds ratio (OR) for women who had taken fertility drugs was 1.1 [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.4-3.3]. The OR were 0.7 (95% CI 0.1-7.9) and 1.0 (95% CI 0.2-3.8) for women who had used fertility drugs for <6 and greater than or equal to 6 cycles resp ectively. Considering the 14 cases and 45 controls reporting difficult y in conception, the risk of ovarian cancer was 0.5 (95% CI 0.1-3.6) f or women who reported use of fertility drugs. Considering nulliparous women only, the estimated OR of ovarian cancer for any fertility drug use was 0.6 (95% CI 0.1-3.5). Although the present results have limita tions in terms of statistical power and available information, they pr ovide reassuring evidence of the absence of a strong association betwe en fertility drugs and subsequent risk of developing epithelial ovaria n cancer.