(Health.com) -- Intrauterine devices (IUDs) prevent unwanted pregnancies, and as an added benefit they may also help protect against cervical cancer, according to a new study in the Lancet Oncology, a British medical journal. Women who use IUDs are roughly half as likely to develop cervical cancer as women who have never used one, the study found. Nor does IUD use appear to increase the risk of human papillomavirus (HPV) infection, a known cause of cervical cancer. European researchers combined and analyzed data from nearly 20,000 women around the world who participated in various studies and surveys between 1985 and 2007. The new analysis does not prove that IUDs directly prevent cervical cancer; it simply suggests that the devices are associated with a lower risk of cancer for reasons that aren't fully understood.

Compared to women who had never used an

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- British, the study participants who had used the devices had 44% lower odds of developing squamous cell carcinoma, by far the most common type of cervical cancer.
- European, the study participants who had used the devices had 44% lower odds of developing squamous cell carcinoma, by far the most common type of cervical cancer.
- HPV, the study participants who had used the devices had 44% lower odds of developing squamous cell carcinoma, by far the most common type of cervical cancer.
- Health.com, the study participants who had used the devices had 44% lower odds of developing squamous cell carcinoma, by far the most common type of cervical cancer.
- IUDs, the study participants who had used the devices had 44% lower odds of developing squamous cell carcinoma, by far the most common type of cervical cancer.
- Lancet Oncology, the study participants who had used the devices had 44% lower odds of developing squamous cell carcinoma, by far the most common type of cervical cancer.


IUDs, the study participants who had used the devices had 44% lower odds of developing squamous cell carcinoma, by far the most common type of cervical cancer.