Use of Fertility Drugs and Risk of Cancer in Women

Background & Objective: The use of assisted reproductive techniques is increasing,but the possible link between fertility drugs and ovarian cancer remains controversial. The objective of the present study is to overview studies in the field of the incidence of cancer in women treated with ovary-stimulating drugs for infertility. Material & Methods: This study is a review of all articles published during the years 2000 and 2016 through databases SID, magiran, Medlib,pub med, Scopus, Google Scholar and Science Direct.Comprehensive search was done with the keywords of infertility, ovulation induction,the risk of cancer, gynecological cancer, clomiphene citrate,human chorionic gonadotropin,uterine cancer, ovarian cancer and breast cancer for Persian articles and their English equivalents for English articles.After reviewing,a total of 64 articles were included in the study. Results: There are two theories that indicate ovulation stimulants drugs increase the risk of cancer: first,frequent ovulation is the cause of damage to the ovary epithelium and leads to malignant changes. Second, these drugs increase both estrogen and progesterone levels,hormones that are known to be effective factors in breast cancer and other cancers in women.Various studies revealed the possibility of an increased risk of uterine, ovarian and breast cancer associated with ovulation stimulation and hormonal changes associated with ovulation stimulation. But these results are not conclusive because of short follow-up periods,small sample size and vague information about the type and the way drug is consumed. Conclusion: No certain association was found between use of fertility drugs and risk of cancer, and given the importance of the subject and the Controversy of the results of studies, further investigation is needed.

Keywords:

Fertility Drugs , Cancer , Women , Infertility