A study purporting to prove the effectiveness of so-called “abortion reversal” has this week received widespread coverage in the fundamentalist Christian and anti-choice press. Doctors have raised numerous concerns about the study, and the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) asserts that abortion reversal is not supported by science.
Abortion Reversal: Debunking the Latest Study
Abortion reversal hinges on the idea that abortion can be reversed by progesterone if a woman takes the drug within 72 hours of taking the first pill of a two-pill abortion drug sequence. So the procedure isn’t really a reversal at all, but rather an incomplete dose of the abortion pill followed by a mega-dose of progesterone. Progesterone helps sustain early pregnancy. Mifespristone, the first of the two abortion drugs, is a progesterone antagonist. There’s no approved dosage of progesterone for reversing abortion, so doctors arbitrarily prescribe varying quantities of the hormone.
The study follows 754 women who called a hotline after taking mifepristone. It claims that 48% of women were successfully able to reverse their abortions, but there were several issues with the study:
- 116 women were lost for follow-up, so the study actually draws on a smaller sample. Such a large number of disappearing participants points to other concerns with the study.
- The study itself admits that as many as 25% of embryos survive a dose of mifepristone even without progesterone. So while a 48% success rate sounds impressive, by the study’s own admission, it merely doubles the normal survival rate. Given other issues with the data, even this apparent doubling could represent a statistical anomaly or an attempt to bias the research.
- The journal which published the study, Issues in Law and Medicine, has a history of publishing biased anti-choice research. It has a close relationship with the advocacy group the American Association for Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists. This calls into question the quality of the journal’s peer-review process.
- The study received an institutional review board, and was therefore not supervised by a disinterested third party.
Previous research has found that as many as half of women who take mifepristone alone will not have a completed abortion. This means that the apparent success of progesterone could be due to pure chance.
Abortion Reversal: ‘Unproven and Unethical’
Using unproven treatments on emotionally vulnerable women is dangerous and unethical. So it should come as no surprise that ACOG calls abortion reversal“unproven and unethical.” The organization argues that previous research on abortion reversal is deeply flawed, and certainly not sufficient grounds on which to base legislation. It also emphasizes that legislation should never mandate medical procedures or attempt to override the doctor-patient relationship. Requiring doctors to tell women about a politically charged unscientific procedure is mandating medical treatment.
What the Anti-Choice Press Won’t Tell You About the Abortion Reversal Study
Anti-choice activists insist that it’s common for women to regret abortion. The study suggests otherwise. Of the women who sought an abortion reversal, 7.6% regretted that decision and opted to stop the abortion reversal and continue with an abortion. This raises real concerns about how abortion reversal—and the unscientific cocktail of hormones it requires—may prey on vulnerable women. Previous studies have found that women are more likely to regret their abortions when they face abortion stigma. Abortion reversal stigmatizes abortion.
The study also excluded the 57 women who opted to stop the reversal procedure from the data. This biases the sample toward “successful” reversals.
How Misleading Research About Abortion Reversal Harms Women
Some states have already enacted legislation requiring doctors to tell women of dubious science claiming their abortions can be reversed. Idaho abortion clinics, thanks to a bill signed into law in March, must now tell women their abortions might be reversible. Abortion clinics in Arizona and Arkansas face similar requirements.
Forcing doctors to lie to women is a wildly popular right-wing tactic. Research has consistently shown that states rely on misleading or nonexistent scientific data to restrict women’s reproductive rights. A study published earlier this year found that abortion regret is largely a myth, but that it consistently informs anti-abortion legislation. Women have likewise complained for years that the media is more likely to listen to men who talk about abortion. A 2016 study supports that claim. Researchers found that media coverage of abortion often features men lying about the procedure. And unlike other lies shared with the media, abortion lies typically go unchecked.