Treatment of infertility does not increase the risk of ovarian cancer among women with a BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutation

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the relationship between use of fertility medication (i.e., selective estrogen receptor [ER] modulator, gonadotropin, or other) or infertility treatment (i.e., IVF or IUI) and the risk of ovarian cancer among women with a BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutation. DESIGN: A matched case-control study of 941 pairs of BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutation carriers with and without a diagnosis of ovarian cancer. SETTING: Genetic clinics. PATIENT(S): Detailed information regarding treatment of infertility was collected from a routinely administered questionnaire. INTERVENTION(S): None. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S): Conditional logistic regression was used to estimate odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals associated with fertility treatment. RESULT(S): There was no significant relationship between the use of any fertility medication or IVF treatment (odds ratio, 0.66; 95% confidence interval 0.18-2.33) and the subsequent risk of ovarian cancer. CONCLUSION(S): Our findings suggest that treatment for infertility does not significantly increase the risk of ovarian cancer among women with a BRCA mutation.