Do fertility treatments and IVF cause breast cancer? What are the possible health risks for a woman receiving in-vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment? A new study suggests that women who started taking fertility drugs when they were 24 years old and went through IVF appear to have a higher risk of developing breast cancer after their IVF treatment. In contrast, women who started their fertility treatment at a later age (40 years old and above) do not seem to face such an increased risk.

Now, before you dump your fertility treatments and IVF, it is important to note that the researchers themselves are not sure whether the higher risk could be attributed to IVF and fertility treatments or whether it could be attributed to something else — such as, for instance, the basic the specific cause of a woman’s infertility.

Says study lead author Louise Stewart of the University of Western Australia in Crawley: Continue reading In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) Side Effects and Health Risks →

Nexplanon Failure Rate, Proper Insertion Technique, and Ovulation After Removal. We’ve already blogged about Nexplanon’s side effects [see Nexplanon: Weight Gain, Menstrual Bleeding, & Depression] but, based on our visitor queries, it is clear that some of you are less interested in the contraceptive implant’s side effects and are more interested in the following:

Can Nexplanon fail? What will cause Nexplanon to fail?
Nexplanon failure occurs when the implant is improperly inserted which may then lead to unintended pregnancy. Here’s a video which demonstrates how a contraceptive implant is inserted correctly. [We know the video is for Implanon but the insertion technique is the same for Nexplanon.]

Continue reading Nexplanon Failure Rate, Proper Insertion Technique, and Ovulation After Removal →

Generic version of popular birth control combo pill gets FDA nod. The United States Food and Drug Administration on April 9 approved the abbreviated new drug application (ANDA) of Glenmark Generics Inc., USA, to produce norgestimate and ethinyl estradiol tablets USP, 0.25 mg/0.035 mg.

The combination hormonal birth control tablet is a generic version of the popular Ortho Cyclen tablets produced by Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and used to prevent pregnancy. Birth control pills that contain norgestimate are the only ones FDA has approved to help reduce acne, and the new generic norgestimate and ethinyl estradiol tablets are also indicated for the treatment of severe acne.

The tablets contain a combination of female hormones that prevent ovulation — or the release of an egg from an ovary. The combo pill also works by causing changes in the cervical mucus and uterine lining of women, making it harder for sperm to reach the uterus and harder for a fertilized egg to attach to the uterus.

Continue reading Generic Ortho Cyclen Pills: Do’s and Don’ts →

HRT Side Effects and Benefits: Does hormone replacement therapy (HRT) help women? Beyond treating menopausal symptoms, does it harm women? The results from research over the past 20 years has been conflicting — and a new analysis of a longitudinal study shows that women who used estrogen alone as HRT for about six years had a lower risk of developing breast cancer up to five years after they stopped taking it.

The analysis, reported in the March 7 issue of journal Lancet Oncology, adds another complication to the still-evolving story on the effects of using hormone replacement therapy.

Hot flashes, night sweats, mood swings and poor sleep quality are some of the distressing symptoms of menopause and doctors have long prescribed hormones to women to relieve these. For some time, the pills were also thought to be good for bones and the heart, and to have other health benefits.

Continue reading HRT Side Effects: Hormone Replacement Therapy Benefits vs. Side Effects →

Nexplanon Side Effects. Here’s something more to feed the fire: Nexplanon, the contraceptive implants in the thick of the controversy over their use in the United Kingdom in under-16 schoolgirls has many side effects, many of them serious.

Common Nexplanon side effects reported in clinical studies sponsored by the drug’s manufacturer, Organon, include the following:

• Pain — headache (1 in 4 of women who had the implant reported this), breast pain (1 in 8 women), abdominal pain (1 in 10), dysmenorrheal (1 in 14), back pain (1 in 16) and pain in the insertion site (1 in 20), Influenza-like symptoms (1 in 14) and unspecified pain (1 in 20)
• Infection—vaginitis (1 in 6), leucorrhea or white vaginal discharge (1 in 10) and pharyngitis (1 in 10)
• Emotional or mental problems like emotional lability (1 in 16), nervousness (1 in 20), depression (1 in 20) and hypersensitivity (1 in 20)
• Undesirable outcomes like weight gain (1 in 6) and acne (1 in 6), dizziness (1 in 14) and nausea (1 in 16)

Continue reading Nexplanon Side Effects: Weight Gain and Depression →