Breast Cancer

There is a large body of evidence supporting the finding that a decision to terminate a pregnancy significantly increases a woman’s risk of breast cancer. It is an undeniable, scientific fact that pregnancy affects the breast tissue and aborting a pregnancy denies the woman the long-term protective effect of her full-term pregnancy. Pregnant women who are considering an abortion need to know that they elevate their risk of breast cancer if they choose abortion over childbirth.

The Right to Know

The concept of informed consent is fundamental in Canadian medical practice. Regardless of how futile or relevant a particular procedure is in the eyes of the doctor, it is ultimately the patient who will decide to accept or refuse a treatment. The right to informed consent is rendered meaningless if the patient is not given sufficient information. Thus there is a legal obligation placed on doctors to provide all of the material information in order for their patients to make an informed choice. It is now well established that failure to disclose information may result in a finding of negligence against a doctor.

In the Supreme Court Decision in Reibl v. Hughes (1980), Chief Justice Laskin wrote "…even if a certain risk is a mere possibility which ordinarily need not be disclosed, yet if its occurrence carries serious consequences, it should be regarded as a material risk requiring disclosure". The Chief Justice actually rejected the original professional disclosure standard in his decision, making the amount of information to be disclosed to patients much greater than what the medical profession had previously observed.

In Canada, the patient’s right to self-determination is the source of the doctor’s duty to disclose material information. However, this standard is not being met within the community of doctors and health care professionals who are working in women’s reproductive health. Women are not being informed about the numerous studies showing a statistically significant link between abortion and breast cancer, information that may have serious bearings on their decision to carry through with an abortion.

This is a violation of a woman’s right to know.