The birth control pill, no longer satisfied with sending sperm to their deaths, may now be trying to kill the gland that dispenses them. Researchers at Princess Margaret Hospital and the University of Toronto examined data from approximately 100 countries, and found among nations with an increased incidence of prostate cancer a similar increase in the use of the pill. Their hypothesis suggests that there may be an environmental link between estrogen evacuated via urine into the water supply and a spike in prostate cancer rates. Of course, the amounts of estrogen necessary to cause prostate cancer are also enough to cause a heart attack. But since the prostate is the most common site of cancer among men in developed nations, this story is worth monitoring at least until Brita discovers a way to filter estrogen.
