A large study conducted by the RCGP, amassing more than one million woman-years of data, has provided reassurance on the safety of the combined oral contraceptive pill (COCP). The study collected long-term data prospectively on more than 28,000 COCP users and a further 17,000 never-users. 'The authors controlled for age, parity, smoking and social class but did not have data on obesity, a variable significantly linked to cancer and mortality risk. Nevertheless this massive, well conducted study provides reassurance that if anything the COCP appears to have significant non-contraceptive health benefits, at least during and shortly after taking it.' [With external links to current evidence]