Silicone Implants Don't Increase Risk for Breast Cancer

April 19, 2006
A recent study found no evidence that silicone breast implants raise the risk of breast cancer in women.

The study, which followed almost 3,500 women for up to 37 years, is particularly notable because of the large size and longevity.

In the new study, American researchers assessed data on 3,486 women who received silicone breast implants for cosmetic purposes between 1965 and 1993. The study followed the women an average of 18.4 years after their surgeries.

The results, published in the April 19 issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, revealed that only 53 women developed breast cancer in comparison to 71.9 cases that were expected to be diagnosed in the general population. There was total of 180 cancer cases in women who had silicone breast implants, slightly less than the 193.1 that would have been expected.

“Women with silicone breast implants should feel reassured,” said study author and president of the International Epidemiology Institute, Joseph McLaughlin.

The debate over silicone breast implants have been ongoing since concerns were raised that leakage could cause a number of diseases including immune system disorders and cancer. Silicone breast implants were banned in the United States in 1992.

However, studies including the most recent one, have found no evidence that leakage from silicone implants causes systemic disease. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is reviewing the results of the recent studies to determine whether or not to allow silicone breast implants back on the market as an alternative to saline implants, which are not always ideal.

Dr. Roxanne Guy, president of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, predicts the FDA will make their final decision about the sale of silicone implants by the end of the year.

Guy said that in some cases, silicone implants are a better choice than saline implants, which don't work as effectively in women with this breast tissue. “There are many patients in which nothing is going to work as well as a silicone implant,” she said.

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