It sounds like a dream ticket for women: a safer contraceptive pill that also treats a range of health problems. But the drug's development is being delayed because in high doses, it is the abortion pill reviled by the anti-abortion lobby and the government of George Bush, says David Baird, a reproductive endocrinologist at the University of Edinburgh, UK, speaking on Monday at a press briefing in London. "Lack of investment in these compounds for use in conditions other than contraception has stemmed from the Bush administration and its policies," he says.
In high doses, progesterone receptor moderators (PRMs) like mifepristone (RU-486) terminate an early pregnancy by halting development of the placenta. In much smaller doses, they could combat endometriosis, fibroids and even brain cancers, because they block the action of the hormone progesterone.
PRMs given as contraceptives would also stop periods altogether - dramatically cutting monthly exposure to oestrogen and progesterone, hormones also linked with breast cancer.
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