Researchers from Curtin University of Technology’s School of Public Health have been involved in a global study that found that ovarian cancers can be prevented by the long-term use of oral contraceptives.

Curtin’s Professor Colin Binns and Professor Andy Lee were part of the collaborative group that conducted the study which pooled data from 45 separate studies across the world.

According to Professor Binns, the study raises the question of whether oral contraceptives should be made more widely available to women to protect them from ovarian cancer.

“The findings of the collaborative study suggests that during the past 50 years, 200 000 cases of ovarian cancer and 100 000 deaths from the disease have already been prevented worldwide through the use of oral contraceptives,” Professor Binns explained.

“Moreover, the findings show that this substantial protection begins quickly and increases with duration of use.”

“These findings set a new standard in primary prevention for a deadly cancer and have important public-health implications,” he said.

The Curtin team contributed the data they collected during their own study in China to the pooled analysis.

“Our own study in Zhejiang found a 28 per cent reduction in the incidence of ovarian cancer in women who took oral contraceptives, which was almost identical to the pooled results of the overall world-wide study,” Professor Binns said.

The collaborative study was published last month in The Lancet, one of the highest ranked medical journals in the world. The journal referred to the findings as “impressive and compelling”.

Professor Binns’ team has now commenced a further study on ovarian cancer in Guangzhou, China, which will provide a larger sample size that will increase the power of their analysis.

The new data from this study will be contributed to a second collaborative study, with the findings scheduled to be published in five years.