Don't panic plea over Pill

From the Lancashire Evening Telegraph, first published Saturday 21st Oct 1995.

HUNDREDS of worried women in East Lancashire were told not to panic as the birth pill controversy raged on today.

Family planning clinics and practice nurses have been deluged with calls since the warning went out, and politicians have said the Department of Health's handling of the warning has been a fiasco.

New unpublished research claims that women taking seven low-dose varieties of the contraceptive pill are twice as likely to develop blood clots.

The pills are Femodene, Femodene ED, Minulet, Triadene, Tri-Minulet, Marvelon and Mercilon, which are taken by about half of all women on oral contraceptives.

Sheila Shaw, manager of the Brook Advisory Centre in Blackburn, said it was vital for women not to panic. She said: "Women should continue taking their pill until the end of the current cycle.

"They should then seek advice from their GP.

When this type of thing occurs, people inevitably panic and stop taking their pill.

"This can lead to pregnancy which carries greater risks of illness.

"All women are told there are small risks associated with the pill.

"They are now being told that the risks have increased."

The research claims that 30 women in every 10,000 are at risk of developing thrombosis with the low-dose brands, compared with 15 in each 10,000 for other varieties.

The low-dose brands were developed in the early 80s and hailed as a major advance to protect women against ovarian and womb cancer as well as pelvic infections that can cause infertility.

The Health Information Service has a confidential helpline to advise women on 0800 665544.

People can also call the local Brook Advisory Centres on 01254 692546 or 01282 416595.

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