Do infertility treatments cause CANCER?

In general, I say NO, but there is more to it.

Females with INFERTILITY have a general INCREASED risk of breast, ovarian, and endometrial cancers at baseline. This is due to the fact that most women with infertility delay childbearing, have fewer pregnancies, and may have other conditions associated with an increased risk of cancer, such as endometriosis or polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).

Below is a summary collected from many different studies that assessed the risks of fertility treatment on various types of caner.

NO increased risk of the following cancers with FERTILITY Treatments:
πŸ”» INVASIVE THYROID CANCER
πŸ”» MELANOMA
πŸ”» COLON CANCER
πŸ”» LYMPHOMA
πŸ”» INVASIVE BREAST CANCER
πŸ”» INVASIVE OVARIAN CANCER
πŸ”» ENDOMETRIAL CANCER
πŸ”» CERVICAL CANCER.

MAY be a link of FERTILITY treatments and an increased risk of the following:
πŸ”Έ BORDERLINE OVARIAN TUMORS
πŸ”Έ IN SITU BREAST CANCER.

What we don’t know about (hasn’t been well studied) is the risk FERTILITY treatments and the following:
πŸ”Ή LUNG CANCER
πŸ”Ή BLADDER CANCER.

Some cancers are hormonally responsive. Therefore, if you have an UNDIAGNOSED cancer, such as breast cancer, then some fertility treatments can increase the growth of tumor cells, causing a change in prognosis. This is why it is important that women undergo screening for breast cancer regularly, and particularly before starting fertility treatments. In fact, some centers will require a mammogram or other form of screening in women aged 40 or older prior to being able to start fertilty hormones or treatment.

In general, if you are healthy, have routine physical examinations and do not have a strong family or personal history of cancers, then fertility treatments are SAFE and do not necessarily increase your risk of cancer.

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