WASHINGTON – In several states, women considering abortion are given government-issued brochures warning that the procedure could increase their chance of developing breast cancer, despite scientific findings to the contrary.
More than a year ago, a panel of scientists convened by the National Cancer Institute reviewed available data and concluded that there was no link. A scientific review in the Lancet, a British medical journal, came to the same conclusion, questioning the methodology in studies that suggested a link.
The cancer information is distributed to women during mandatory waiting periods before abortions. In some cases, the information is on the states’ Web sites.
“We’re going to continue to educate the public about this,” said Karen Malec, president of the Coalition on Abortion/Breast Cancer, an anti-abortion group. She dismissed the National Cancer Institute’s findings as politically motivated and maintained that the link has been scientifically proven.
The effort to write the issue into state laws began in the mid-1990s, when a few studies suggested women who had abortions or miscarriages might be more likely to develop breast cancer. The warnings are now required in Texas and Mississippi, and health officials in Kansas and Louisiana voluntarily issue them.
In Mississippi, women who want abortions must sign a form indicating they have been told there is a “medical risk” of breast cancer. In other states, brochures say there is a link or that evidence is mixed.
Minnesota law requires the health department to include this information on its Web site, but the department backed down after an outcry from the state’s medical community. Montana law also mandated the warning, but the state Supreme Court struck it down.
The brochures still in circulation tell women the issue “needs further study.”
“They can do further research on their own and determine which of those studies they should put most attention on,” said Sharon Watson, spokeswoman for the Kansas Department of Health and Environment. “We’re just trying to provide all the information it’s possible to provide.”
In Louisiana there will be changes, said Bob Johannessen, spokesman for the state’s Department of Health and Hospitals. He said the department’s new director did not know the state pamphlet included such information until contacted this week.
“If there is scientific evidence, and it certainly appears there now is, we would certainly make the necessary changes in that brochure,” Johannessen said Tuesday.
The brochure, he said, is a reflection of the “very, very strong pro-family, pro-life leaning” of Louisiana.
“Nonetheless, it’s incumbent on us as the health agency to make sure any information is factually correct,” he said. “We don’t want to be misleading women who are making this important choice.”
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