Possible risk of lymphoma from breast implants

30/03/2010

There have recently been some reports of a possible association between breast implants and lymphoma. These reports reflect only a very small number of cases when compared to numbers of breast implants performed in the world.

Currently there is no scientific evidence as to whether these tumours are occurring at normal rates in the population or whether there is a heightened risk. At this stage it is not clear whether having breast implants truly increases your risk of breast lymphoma, or whether this is a co-incidental observation only. If there is an increased risk of lymphoma it would be, at a worst case scenario, only a slightly increased risk: 1 in thousands or tens of thousands.

If you had implants and were unlucky enough to get lymphoma of the breast, it would mean removal of the implants, chemotherapy and probably radiotherapy. While there are only a small number of cases, results so far indicate the chances of cure are good. There would be a remote chance of the disease spreading or not responding to treatment.

The New Zealand Association of Plastic Surgeons has pro-actively contacted MedSafe and notified them of the current data available surrounding this issue. MedSafe is the government organization responsible for monitoring the use of medical devices such as breast implants. Additionally the Therapeutic Goods Administration or TGA in Australia has been similarly notified.

Your consultation is an important opportunity to discuss all risks associated with surgery, including this particular issue. Your surgeon will appropriately inform you of all the potential risks inherent in surgery and insertion of prosthetic devices.