Acknowledging breast cancer risk in double negatives makes it obscure to the public. Professor Burton has also admitted that delayed first full-term pregnancy increases the risk of breast cancer. This leaves health departments with the responsibility of telling pregnant teenagers, hustled off to abortion clinics by distraught parents or boyfriends, that while their pregnancy may be a social problem, it is not a biological one and, carried to term, gives substantial protection against a major killer. Women cannot give informed consent if they are not told about a risk that 27 out of 34 studies shows does exist. Several states in the US have mandatory warnings about the increased risk of breast cancer to women presenting for abortion.
Australian women deserve no less.
They could at least be warned that if they have had an abortion, they need to be extra vigilant about breast examinations and mammograms. Many risk factors are unavoidable, but women can avoid abortions. Sadly, many continue to suffer, and some die, unnecessarily, while anti-cancer organisations fail to give clear advice that women could reduce their breast cancer risk by carrying their babies to term and breastfeeding them. Life Infonet is a daily compilation of pro-life news and information.