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Funny that you should mention tumor angiogenesis. Two of my female friends were diagnosed with Uterine Fibroids [1] in their 30s, and both their doctors said b

Funny that you should mention tumor angiogenesis. Two of my female friends were diagnosed with Uterine Fibroids [1] in their 30s, and both their doctors said basically the same thing in recommending hysterectomy - paraphrasing: "The uterus is good for two things, growing babies and growing tumors." Apparently these are extremely common, and hormonal birth control exacerbates the problem by making the body behave as if it's constantly pregnant. Both of my friends were angry about having been casually prescribed birth control pills as teens without being clearly informed of it increasing the probability of this outcome. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uterine_fibroid https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uterine_fibroid

ShabbosGoy 9y ago
Intuitively, it makes sense. Life and growth are inextricably linked, as are death and destruction. Unrestricted cellular growth leads to cancer/tumors, unrestricted cellular destruction also leads to cancer, but of autoimmune origin.
seszett 9y ago
On the topic of birth control, your Wikipedia links though says that "The incidence of uterine fibroids in Europe is thought to be lower than the incidence in the US." Since hormonal birth control is much more common in Europe than in the US, that would seem to hint that uterine fibroids are not directly linked to hormonal birth control. On the contrary, the pill seems to help prevent them instead[1]. When I lived in Canada I was always surprised how much people seemed to fear the pill when it has been something completely normal in Europe for two generations already. I'm still not sure why there is this difference of attitude between the two sides of the Atlantic. [1]http://www.bmj.com/content/293/6543/359 http://www.bmj.com/content/293/6543/359
- newnewpdro 9y ago
  This is not a topic I have researched one iota. My post was simply sharing what these women shared with me about their experiences with their respective doctors. However, it takes little effort to find contradictory information on the subject via google: "Medical practitioners believe and research has recognized the increased levels of estrogen generated by the body preparing for pregnancy and preventative medicines like birth control have a correlation between the cause and effect of uterine fibroids." "There are two major components known for stimulating the growth of fibroids; estrogen and progesterone. Birth control pills contain both of these elements causing the medical industry to take additional steps in studying the levels of estrogen and the potential rate of fibroid enlargement caused by a women’s use of prescribed birth control pills." taken from https://fibroids.com/blog/fact-fiction-birth-control-can-cause-fibroids/ https://fibroids.com/blog/fact-fiction-birth-control-can-cau... Considering the amount of revenue hormonal birth control generates for pharmaceutical companies, it would not surprise me in the least to discover behaviors resembling the tobacco industry's misinformation campaigns to protect those revenues.
  - Spooky23 9y ago
    Birth control pills are mostly generic and super cheap. The name brand ones are expensive due to the click wheel package.
    - newnewpdro 9y ago
      I assume, perhaps wrongly, that any prescription drug a large swath of the population is taking continously is a cash cow by multiplication alone.
      - fao_ 9y ago
        You are incorrect. I researched DIY HRT for a trans friend of mine. It turns out that in most countries estrogen is so cheap to manufacture, that it is cheaper to manufacture estrogen than it is to replace it with a low-cost alternative. [You can dig https://www.reddit.com/r/TransDIY https://www.reddit.com/r/TransDIY for sources, this was written from memory]
      - Spooky23 9y ago
        It's a pure commodity. I recall when my wife was moved to the generic the out of pocket cost was like $8, which was under the copay. The pharmacist said that the placebo pill that is there for the last days of the cycle was more expensive than the actual drug!
      - newnewpdro 9y ago
        "Global contraceptives market size in 2015 was USD 19.8 billion and is projected to increase at 6.8% CAGR throughout the next seven year timeframe." "Contraceptive pills is identified to be the most lucrative product segment in the contraceptive drugs market, estimated to grow at a CAGR of 5.3%, from 2016 to 2023. The industry is majorly driven by the presence of favorable government initiatives and regulatory framework." https://globenewswire.com/news-release/2016/05/19/841462/0/en/Contraceptives-Market-size-to-exceed-33-Billion-by-2023-Global-Market-Insights-Inc.html https://globenewswire.com/news-release/2016/05/19/841462/0/e...
  - seszett 9y ago

ShabbosGoy 9y ago

Intuitively, it makes sense. Life and growth are inextricably linked, as are death and destruction. Unrestricted cellular growth leads to cancer/tumors, unrestricted cellular destruction also leads to cancer, but of autoimmune origin.

seszett 9y ago

On the topic of birth control, your Wikipedia links though says that "The incidence of uterine fibroids in Europe is thought to be lower than the incidence in the US." Since hormonal birth control is much more common in Europe than in the US, that would seem to hint that uterine fibroids are not directly linked to hormonal birth control. On the contrary, the pill seems to help prevent them instead[1]. When I lived in Canada I was always surprised how much people seemed to fear the pill when it has been something completely normal in Europe for two generations already. I'm still not sure why there is this difference of attitude between the two sides of the Atlantic. [1]http://www.bmj.com/content/293/6543/359 http://www.bmj.com/content/293/6543/359

newnewpdro 9y ago
This is not a topic I have researched one iota. My post was simply sharing what these women shared with me about their experiences with their respective doctors. However, it takes little effort to find contradictory information on the subject via google: "Medical practitioners believe and research has recognized the increased levels of estrogen generated by the body preparing for pregnancy and preventative medicines like birth control have a correlation between the cause and effect of uterine fibroids." "There are two major components known for stimulating the growth of fibroids; estrogen and progesterone. Birth control pills contain both of these elements causing the medical industry to take additional steps in studying the levels of estrogen and the potential rate of fibroid enlargement caused by a women’s use of prescribed birth control pills." taken from https://fibroids.com/blog/fact-fiction-birth-control-can-cause-fibroids/ https://fibroids.com/blog/fact-fiction-birth-control-can-cau... Considering the amount of revenue hormonal birth control generates for pharmaceutical companies, it would not surprise me in the least to discover behaviors resembling the tobacco industry's misinformation campaigns to protect those revenues.
- Spooky23 9y ago
  Birth control pills are mostly generic and super cheap. The name brand ones are expensive due to the click wheel package.
  - newnewpdro 9y ago
    I assume, perhaps wrongly, that any prescription drug a large swath of the population is taking continously is a cash cow by multiplication alone.
    - fao_ 9y ago
      You are incorrect. I researched DIY HRT for a trans friend of mine. It turns out that in most countries estrogen is so cheap to manufacture, that it is cheaper to manufacture estrogen than it is to replace it with a low-cost alternative. [You can dig https://www.reddit.com/r/TransDIY https://www.reddit.com/r/TransDIY for sources, this was written from memory]
    - Spooky23 9y ago
      It's a pure commodity. I recall when my wife was moved to the generic the out of pocket cost was like $8, which was under the copay. The pharmacist said that the placebo pill that is there for the last days of the cycle was more expensive than the actual drug!
    - newnewpdro 9y ago
      "Global contraceptives market size in 2015 was USD 19.8 billion and is projected to increase at 6.8% CAGR throughout the next seven year timeframe." "Contraceptive pills is identified to be the most lucrative product segment in the contraceptive drugs market, estimated to grow at a CAGR of 5.3%, from 2016 to 2023. The industry is majorly driven by the presence of favorable government initiatives and regulatory framework." https://globenewswire.com/news-release/2016/05/19/841462/0/en/Contraceptives-Market-size-to-exceed-33-Billion-by-2023-Global-Market-Insights-Inc.html https://globenewswire.com/news-release/2016/05/19/841462/0/e...
- seszett 9y ago