U.S Supreme Court Refuses to Hear Abortion-Breast Cancer Link Lawsuit

Oct 19, 2004 03:14 PM EDT

On Monday, Oct. 18, the Supreme Court declined to hear a lawsuit by three California women who said Planned Parenthood withholds information concerning the link between abortion and breast cancer.

The three women asked a judge to order the PP clinics in the San Diego and Riverside counties to inform women considering abortions of the risks involved in the procedure; specifically, the suit asked that the clinics let women know that induced abortions increase the risk of breast cancer.

The U.S Supreme Court dismissed the suit and allowed an earlier decision by the California Supreme Court to stand. In addition, it ordered the women to pay more than 77-thousand dollars in attorneys' fees.

Of the 41 studies which have been previously published, 29 show that women who have chosen abortion have a higher chance of getting breast cancer.

The Association of American Physicians and Surgeons (AAPS) also announced that the relationship is "highly plausible" and that women "may reconsider abortion" if they are told the facts.

Another study performed by Breast Cancer Preventive Institution also showed that a teenager who has had an abortion between 9 and 24 weeks of pregnancy has higher chance of developing breast cancer in her lifetime than those who do not abort.