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We've already known about the slightly elevated risk of breast cancer while taking birth control pills, which previous research showed to be eliminated 10 years after stopping the method.

Dr. Mary Jane Minkin, OB-GYN and clinical professor at Yale School of Medicine, told BuzzFeed Health that this slight increased risk most likely means that some cancers could be more likely to grow and become detectable while you're taking hormonal contraception. These cancers typically take years to develop, says Minkin, but it makes sense that the presence of hormones may accelerate that process for some. That said, the fact that the increased risk goes away after you stop the method means that it probably isn't causing new cancers to form in your body, explained Minkin.

And about that cervical cancer risk, Minkin said it's important to remember that many people taking birth control pills (especially back in the '70s) were not also using condoms, which could put them at an increased risk of HPV, which can cause cervical cancer. Another theory is that the hormones in birth control pills might affect how your body responds to HPV infection. Regardless, it's reassuring to see that there was no long-term association between birth control pills and cervical cancer.

Finally, keep in mind that the risk of these cancers is already very low in young people, said Minkin. In the US, the absolute risk of developing breast cancer in the next 10 years is 0.06% for a 20-year-old and 0.4% for a 30-year-old. And cervical cancer occurs most often in women over age 30.