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Abortion Hurts Women Fact Sheet
Women Deserve to Know
If you've experienced the trauma of abortion, you need to protect your future health through proper screening . . . for the sake of yourself and those who love you.
If you're considering abortion, you need to know the health risks that you face. . .for the sake of yourself and those who love you.
Women deserve to know. Women need to know.
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LONG-TERM HEALTH EFFECTS AFTER ABORTION:
What Every Woman Needs to Know
*Based on a 2003 peer-reviewed abstract of abortion-related health studies over the 30 years of legalized abortion.
BREAST CANCER
It is undisputed that completing a full-term pregnancy provides protection against breast cancer. This is called the “protective effect." This protection is lost when a woman has an abortion.
This loss of protective effect can double a woman's lifetime risk of breast cancer.
Abortion, all by itself, slightly increases breast cancer risk. This is called the "independent effect.” A meta-analysis shows an increased independent risk of 30%.
Prevention Steps
Perform a monthly breast self exam
Obtain a yearly breast exam from a health care provider
Discuss a schedule for mammogram or other imaging studies with your health care provider
DEPRESSION & SELF HARM
Increased depression, even years after abortion, for some women
Increased self harm, suicide attempts, and suicide (over twice as likely for women who have an abortion)
Prevention Steps
Talk to your health care provider about how you feel
Talk to a therapist or someone you trust
If you feel like hurting yourself, call your local suicide prevention hotline
NEXT PREGNANCY
Increased risk of pre-term birth (babies born prematurely have more infections, lung disease, and long-term developmental problems such as cerebral palsy)
Increased risk of placenta previa (where the placenta blocks the cervix, which requires a c-section for delivery)
Prevention Steps
Obtain prenatal care early in the next pregnancy
Get an ultrasound in the middle of your pregnancy
Tell your health care provider you are at higher risk of pre-term delivery
A 2003 comprehensive women’s health study shows:
Abortion increases the risk of:
o breast cancer
o depression & suicide
o pre-term birth & placenta previa
Abortion does not increase the risk of:
o infertility
o miscarriage
o tubal or ectopic pregnancy
Your health care provider may not know this new information. You can reduce your risk by taking prevention steps.
*This information is based upon “Long-Term Physical & Psychological Health Consequences of Induced Abortion: Review of the Evidence,” by J.M. Thorp, Jr., MD, K.E. Hartmann, MD, PhD, and E.M. Shadigian, MD. OB/GYN Survey 58(1): 67-79, 2003.
That research paper reviewed over 60 international studies and included more than one million women.
The study’s authors are:
John M. Thorp, Jr., M.D., Mcallister Distinguished Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, and Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, School of Medicine, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.
Katherine E. Hartmann, M.D., Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, and Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, School of Medicine, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.
Elizabeth Shadigian, M.D., Associate Professor, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, School of Medicine, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.
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Article:
We Can Cure Most Breast Cancers With Early Diagnosis and Treatment
Medscape, 6/17/2005
Harvey V. Fineberg, MD, PhD
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