Woman, 45, Took Birth Control Shots for 21 Years. Now, She’s Been Diagnosed with 4 Brain Tumors

need to know

• Woman, 45, ‘regrets’ taking birth control shot after being diagnosed with four brain tumors

• Doctors said the meningioma may be related to the woman’s injectable contraceptive pills – which she had been taking regularly for 21 years to avoid menstrual cramps.

• ‘I’m going to have my period any day now,’ Kerry Sharples says

A woman says she “regrets” taking the birth control shot after being diagnosed with four brain tumours, which her doctor says may have something to do with it.

Kerry Sharples told her doctor during a routine visit in 2025 that she had a pulse in her right ear, the JFK News reported.

Sharples, 45, said her doctor ordered some scans and blood tests as a precaution, and she later received the shocking news: She had four benign brain tumors, also known as meningiomas. (The largest tumor was located behind her right eye and measured about 1.4 inches.)

It was then, the woman said, that her doctor recommended she stop injecting hormonal contraceptives – which she had been taking regularly for 21 years to avoid menstrual cramps.

“I regret receiving these injections,” Sharples said. “As silly as it sounds now, I just didn’t want to get my period and kept going. Now I’ve got four brain tumors. I’m going to get my period any day now. It’s crazy.”

Sharples, a mother of two, said that after she learned she had a brain tumor, her doctor explained to her that there was relatively new evidence that suggested a small link between the birth control shot and her diagnosis.

The woman said if she had known in advance of the link, no matter how small, between the injections and meningiomas, she might have made different decisions about her personal health plan.

“I know a lot of women have certain side effects, but in my case, I’m fine. I thought, ‘Why change something that’s not broken?’ Did they mention [the brain tumors]it would be different,” said Sharples, from Cheshire, England.

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“I was a little naive [not] Look into it,” she added. “But you just assume you got it from a doctor so you’re OK. “

Sharples did not reveal the specific name of the contraceptive injectable she had been using.

Looking back, Sharples said she was “completely shocked” by the diagnosis. She added that she still doesn’t know if she’s fully accepted that.

“I’m pretty good at it and keep going [kind of person,] But sometimes it does get to you,” she said.

Sharples now fears she could have gone blind or died if doctors hadn’t ordered tests, adding of her brain tumors: “I hope they shrink or just stop growing and now I’m leaving [the hormones]”.

Sharples hopes that by sharing her story, more women will be aware of the potential risks of synthetic progesterone birth control shots.

“I don’t want to scare people [or] Let them fear God, but they do need to realize what [the shots] It could lead to that,” she said.

“Rethink and do your research. There are other options,” the woman added.

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According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the overall clinical risk of meningioma is low with the vaccine.

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