WEDNESDAY, March 18, 2026 (HealthDay News) -- Among women using medically assisted reproduction (MAR), the overall incidence of cancer was comparable to that of the general population, according to a study published online March 10 in JAMA Network Open.
Claire Melissa Vajdic, Ph.D., from University of New South Wales in Sydney, and colleagues compared cancer incidence in MAR-exposed women versus the general population of women. The analysis included 417,984 women (aged 18 to 55 years) who used MAR from 1991 to 2018 (assisted reproductive therapy [ART], 65.7 percent; intrauterine insemination with ovarian stimulation [IUI/OS], 28.9 percent; and ovulation induction using clomiphene citrate [clomiphene citrate], 42.0 percent).
The researchers found that the overall incidence of invasive cancer was comparable with that of the general population for the ART and IUI/OS groups. Risk trended toward elevation for the clomiphene citrate cohort. Across all MAR exposures, the incidence rates of uterine cancer and in situ and invasive melanoma were higher, while lower incidence rates were seen for cervical cancer and cancer of the trachea, bronchus, and lung. For the ART and IUI/OS groups, ovarian cancer incidence was higher. Only the ART cohort had higher in situ breast cancer incidence, but the incidence of invasive breast cancer was not elevated. For invasive cancers with elevated incidence, rate differences were all small (<1 to 6.51 cases per 100,000 person-years).
"Women who've had assisted fertility should continue to participate in routine cancer screening programs they’re eligible for," co-lead author Adrian Raymond Walker, Ph.D., also from University of New South Wales, said in a statement. "And they should discuss their cancer risk with their doctor, to understand how else they can reduce their risk."
Several authors disclosed ties to the biopharmaceutical industry.