A 30-year-woman presents to your office because she is afraid of developing ovarian cancer. Her 70-year-old grandmother recently died from ovarian cancer, and she is upset and tearful. You discuss with her the risk factors and prevention strategies for ovarian cancer.
Which of the following can decrease a woman’s risk of ovarian cancer?
A. Use of combination oral contraceptive therapyOral contraceptive use, multiparity, breastfeeding, and early menopause are all factors believed to decrease the risk of developing ovarian cancer because they reduce the number of years a woman spends ovulating. The use of combination oral contraceptives decreases the risk of developing ovarian cancer by about 40%. Nulliparity, increasing age, and fertility drugs all increase ovulatory cycles and therefore are risk factors for developing ovarian cancer. In the general population, the risk of developing ovarian cancer is about 1% to 1.5%. This risk increases to about 5% if a woman has one first-degree relative with ovarian cancer and to about 7% if she has two or more first-degree relatives with ovarian cancer.