Breast implants: UK to review risk assessment data

A review of data used to assess the risks posed by faulty breast implants is to be carried out by the government. Health Secretary Andrew Lansley, who announced the move, reiterated the government's advice that the implants did not need to be routinely removed. The implants by French firm Poly Implant Prothese (PIP) were banned last year after they were found to contain a non-medical-grade silicone filler. It is thought some 40,000 British women have the implants. Mr Lansley repeated the stance, expressed by the government last week, that there was "no evidence" of a safety concern. However, he said "conflicting data" had been provided by a large private provider of the implants, which had left him "concerned and unhappy". The health secretary said a group of experts would assess the latest data and report back to ministers next week. Last week, French authorities recommended that 30,000 women have faulty breast implants removed as a precaution. France's government, which said there was no evidence of a cancer link, will cover the cost. Eight cases of cancer have been reported in women with the implants but the French authorities say these are not necessarily linked to faulty implants. One woman with an anaplastic large cell lymphoma (ALCL) cancer died. However, French and US experts have said there appears to be a small increased risk of this kind of rare cancer with any brand of implant. Meanwhile, UK medicines watchdog the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Authority (MHRA) has said it recognises women's concerns. PIP used non-medical-grade silicone believed to be made for mattresses, according to the British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons (BAAPS). This meant the low-cost devices were more likely to split. PIP went into administration last year and the use of its implants was banned. At least 250 British women are taking legal action against the clinics that treated them. More than 300,000 implants are believed to have been sold globally by PIP over the last 12 years in some 65 countries. More than half of its exports went to South America, including to Venezuela, Colombia, Argentina and Chile. In Brazil, some 25,000 women are believed to have had the implants, according to the AFP news agency. Western Europe was another major market. In addition to the UK, Spain, Italy, Germany and Ukraine are known to have imported PIP silicon sacs.