Cancer of the ovary is the sixth leading cancer among females in Bangalore, and is a leading site of cancer in other population-based cancer registries in India. A case-control investigation was conducted utilizing the data from the population-based cancer registry in Bangalore. In addition to the core patient information, certain other details pertaining to consumption of tobacco, reproductive and obstetric factors and those related to the practice of family planning, including the method adopted, were available with the registry, for the period 1982-1985. Identical information was also available for patients residing in the registry area who did not have cancer. Ninety-seven cases of ovarian cancer in ever-married women were age-matched with 194 controls from the same area who showed no evidence of cancer. The risk of ovarian cancer was not influenced by tobacco habits, alcohol consumption, diet or the various reproductive factors. However, tubectomy as a method of family planning appeared to reduce the risk of development of ovarian cancer. This reduction in risk was not influenced by parity or age of the woman at the time of birth of the first child.
PIP: Researchers used data from the population-based cancer registry in Bangalore, India, for the period 1982-1985 to conduct a case control study to examine the effect of tobacco, alcohol, dietary practices, and reproductive factors on the development of ovarian cancer. Cases included 97 ever-married women with ovarian cancer. Controls consisted of two sets of age-matched ever-married women living in the same residential area who had no evidence of cancer. A history of practicing family planning was associated with a significant decreased risk of ovarian cancer (odds ratio [OR] = 0.29; p = 0.01). When the researchers considered the family planning method as well as possible confounding factors (e.g., nulliparity, gravidity, and maternal age at first birth), tubectomy reduced the risk of developing ovarian cancer (OR = 0.25; p = 0.02). When they only considered papillary serous cystadenocarcinoma, which accounted for 45.4% of all ovarian cancer cases, the OR was even lower (0.16). The numbers were too small for the other types of ovarian cancer to calculate the OR. Tobacco chewing, alcohol consumption, dietary practices, and other reproductive factors (e.g., parity and maternal age at first birth) did not influence the risk of ovarian cancer. These findings suggest that tubectomy reduces the risk of ovarian cancer. If other studies confirm these findings, perhaps tubectomy can be a preventive measure against ovarian cancer in high-risk nulliparous populations in the West.