NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – Women who undergo in vitro fertilization (IVF) are not at increased risk for cancer, according to a report published in the February issue of Fertility and Sterility. This refutes earlier study findings that have suggested a link between ovarian hyperstimulation and ovarian cancer.
Dr. Liat Lerner-Geva, from Chaim Sheba Medical Center in Tel Hashomer, Israel, and colleagues assessed cancer incidence rates in 5026 women who underwent IVF between 1981 and 1992.
Among a similar group of women in the general population, 35.6 cancer cases would be expected, but only 27 occurred in the study cohort, the authors report.
In terms of specific cancer sites, standardized incidence ratios were 0.69 for breast cancer, 0.57 for ovarian cancer, and 0.58 for cervical malignancy. The observed rate of endometrial cancer was higher than expected, at an SIR of 2.25.
Analysis of data from a subset of women revealed that the type of infertility, number of IVF cycles, and treatment outcome had no bearing on cancer risk, the investigators state.
"We found no increased risk for cancer in women undergoing IVF treatment compared with the general population," the researchers state. While the study was sufficiently powered to exclude an association between IVF and all-site cancer, they point out that it cannot exclude excess cancer risk at specific sites.
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