Second Abortion-Cancer Lawsuit in U.S. Successfully Prosecuted

The Coalition on Abortion/Breast Cancer applauds the successful prosecution of a lawsuit against an abortion clinic and a physician for performing an abortion on a 15-year-old girl without informing her of the psychological risks and the increased risk of breast cancer.  It is the second abortion-cancer lawsuit to be successfully prosecuted in the U.S. and the first case to obtain a judgment.

All Women's Health Services, a clinic in Portland, Oregon, made an offer of judgment last year. 1 This allows the plaintiff to win the lawsuit without a trial. The judge signed the agreement on January 24, 2005. The amount of the judgment is confidential.

The teenaged plaintiff has a family history of breast cancer and indicated a history of cancer on the clinic intake forms.  According to research in 1994 by Janet Daling and her colleagues at Seattle's Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, teenagers with a family history of the disease who procure abortions before age 18 have an incalculably high breast cancer risk.

Abortions that occur before the birth of a first child are the most carcinogenic, a finding supported by biological and epidemiological evidence.

Karen Malec, president of the coalition, was encouraged by the successful prosecution of the case.  She remarked, "Women have been told lies about the research and have been cruelly exploited by two industries - the breast cancer fundraising industry and the abortion industry.  Women will not receive justice until they file civil lawsuits."

The plaintiff and her attorney, Jonathan Clark, are available for interviews.  Clark can be reached at:

Jonathan A. Clark, PC
960 Liberty Street SE, Suite 250
Salem, Oregon 97302
Phone:(503) 581-1229
Fax:(503) 365-0374

The Coalition on Abortion/Breast Cancer is an international women's organization founded to protect the health and save the lives of women by educating and providing information on abortion as a risk factor for breast cancer.

• 1. FB vs. All Women's Health Services and Dr. John Doe, Multnomah County Circuit Court, Case #0307-07422.