Ovarian cancer is the tenth most commonly diagnosed cancer in Australian women, but researchers from the University of South Australia believe they may have found an important tool to reduce the risk of many women developing the disease.

You’ve likely already heard of the additional benefits some pill users experience in addition to contraception – clearer skin, improved mood, more regular periods. But new research suggests there may be another pleasant side effect of the oral contraceptive pill.

Researchers from the University of South Australia (UniSA) used artificial intelligence to screen over 200,000 women aged 37 – 73 for risk factors of ovarian cancer.

They found that women who had ever used the oral contraceptive pill had a 26 per cent reduction in risk of ovarian cancer, while women who used the pill after turning 45 had a 43 per cent reduction.

While the project lead, Professor Elina Hyppönen says “more research is needed to establish the best approaches to prevention, as well as the ways in which we can identify women most at risk”, she notes that according to the team’s findings, “it is possible that by using the contraceptive pill to reduce ovulations or by reducing harmful adiposity, we may be able to lower to risk of ovarian cancer.”

Ovarian cancer in Australia

According to the Royal Women’s Hospital, ‘around 3 in 100 Australian women who have cancer have ovarian cancer’, and ‘each year about 1300 Australian women find out they have ovarian cancer.’

The disease also commonly affects women over the age of 50 and is cause for concern for many aging Australian women. As per Body+Soul’s Health of the Nation report, 46 per cent of Australians’ biggest health concern is getting cancer as they age.

It is the tenth most commonly diagnosed cancer in Australian women, and the sixth most common cause of death from cancer in women.

UniSA researcher Dr Amanda Lumsden says “ovarian cancer is notoriously diagnosed at a late stage, with about 70% of cases only identified when they are significantly advanced.”

"Late detection contributes to a survival rate of less than 30% over five years, in comparison to more than 90% for ovarian cancers that are caught early". She adds "that’s why it’s so important to identify risk factors."

The potential of AI in cancer diagnosis

Artificial intelligence is more regularly being used in hospitals and labs around the world. From analysing medical imaging data to building personalised treatment plans, medical professionals are enlisting the help of AI to detect and treat illnesses.

The UniSA researchers believe they identified ‘some biomarkers associated with ovarian cancer risk' through their AI-assisted assessment, 'including several characteristics of red blood cells and certain liver enzymes in the blood, with lower body weight and shorter stature associating with a lower risk of ovarian cancer.’

Machine learning specialist, Dr Iqbal Madakkate worked on the study and says the research is a good example of how AI ‘can help to identify risk factors that may otherwise have gone undetected.’ 

“We included information from almost 3000 diverse characteristics related to health, medication use, diet and lifestyle, physical measures, metabolic, and hormonal factors, each measured at the start of the study,” Madakkatel says.

“It was particularly interesting that some blood measures – which were measured on average 12.6 years before diagnoses – were predictive of ovarian cancer risk, because it suggests we may be able to develop tests to identify women at risk at a very early stage.”