AMA attacks Eric Abetz comments linking abortion to breast cancer
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Version 0 of 1. The Australian Medical Association has attacked comments by Senator Eric Abetz linking abortion with breast cancer. Abetz, the leader of the government in the upper house and the employment minister, appeared on the Channel 10 program The Project and was asked if he believed the “factually incorrect” statement that abortion leads to breast cancer. “I think the studies, and I think they date back from the 1950s, assert that there is a link between abortion and breast cancer,” he said on Thursday night. The senator then said there were organisations, other than the AMA, that had differing views. The AMA’s president, Associate Professor Brian Owler, said the senator had “cherry-picked” old information skewed towards an anti-abortion ideology. The comments were not based on current or conventional medical evidence, he said. “I just don’t understand why a senior member of government would want to try to take on this issue and put himself out in the media using articles I’m told are from the 1950s as the basis of his discussion,” Owler said. “This is a serious issue and it should be discussed on the basis of current medical evidence. There is no evidence to say breast cancer and abortion are linked.” The professor said he respected freedom of speech but Abetz’s comments came with significant responsibility because of his senior government role. “Let’s not use false evidence or try and link abortion with other things such as breast cancer,” he said. “I don’t think it’s fair and it’s certainly not fair to people who may have experienced breast cancer.” Owler said AMA was also concerned at the involvement of senior members of government, including Abetz, with the World Congress of Families event to be held this month in Melbourne. On Friday Abetz issued a statement that acknowledged the link was “not the accepted medical view”. “Media reports that I have drawn or believe there is a link between abortion and breast cancer are incorrect,” he said. “In my interview last night on The Project I studiously avoided doing so, and was cut off before being able to acknowledge that Dr Angela Lanfranchi’s views on this topic were not the accepted medical view.” |