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"  Photo: Getty Images In a scary new study, researchers found that women who took oral contraceptives in the past year had about a 50 percent greater chance of developing breast cancer than women who hadn&amp;#039;t recently (or hadn&amp;#039;t ever) taken the pill. The link between the estrogen found in oral contraceptives and breast cancer isn&amp;#039;t entirely new. (It&amp;#039;s even disclosed on the little pamphlet that accompanies your prescription.) But this study is the first of its kind to compare risks of the specific kinds of birth control that women pop regularly. Related: 6 Women Who Could Lose Their Contraception Coverage After the Hobby Lobby Decision The study included 23,052 women between the ages of 20 and 49, including 1,102 women diagnosed with breast cancer. Those who took triphasic combo pills containing an average of 0.75 milligrams of norethindrone posed the greatest risk. Women on high-dose estrogen pills, ethynodiol diacetate pills, and moderate-dose estrogen pills were also more susceptible, while low-estrogen pills didn&amp;#039;t appear to increase breast cancer risk. Related: Breaking Down the Cost of Birth Control in Bro Terms So what should you do if you&amp;#039;re on one of the pills that do appear to be harmful? Nothing \u2014 at least for now, says lead study author Elisabeth Beaber, Ph.D., a staff scientist in the Public Health Sciences Division of Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle. &amp;quot;Our results aren&amp;#039;t sufficient to change clinical practice, but they do suggest areas for future research,&amp;quot; Beaber says. &amp;quot;It&amp;#039;s important to remember that breast cancer is rare among young women and that there are other established health benefits associated with oral contraceptive use,&amp;quot; she adds, like protecting against unwanted pregnancy, clearing up your skin, regulating your period, and lightening your flow. Also worth noting: High-estrogen birth control pills aren&amp;#039;t particularly common these days. And of course, you can always ask your OB/GYN about your pill prescription if you have a family history of breast cancer. From the editors of  "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.elle.com/life-love/sex-relationships/news/a25110/birth-control-breast-cancer/>