Breast implants do not pose cancer risk

Women who receive breast implants for cosmetic purposes do not appear to be at an increased long-term risk of developing breast cancer.Researchers from the Laval University in Quebec, Canada, found that the women who had received breast implants had a lower rate of breast cancer as compared to the general population. These women also showed a lower-than-average risk of developing cancer of any kind. The researchers analysed 24,558 women who underwent breast augmentation, mostly with silicone-gel implants, between 1974 and 1989. Their cancer incidence was compared with that of the general population, as well as a group of 15,893 women who underwent other cosmetic procedures during the same time period.

Another study of Danish women followed for up to 30 years found no evidence of a higher risk of any cancer among breast implant recipients. The current study also found that women with implants had a lower risk of breast cancer than those who underwent other types of cosmetic surgery in years past. Researchers speculate that one possibility could be that women whose family history puts them at risk of breast cancer are less likely to get cosmetic implants. Other studies have found that, compared with the general population, women who undergo breast augmentation tend to be thinner and have children at a younger age, both of which may lower the risk of breast cancer.

Women in both cosmetic-surgery groups had lower-than-average rates of both breast cancer and cancer in general, with implant recipients showing the lowest breast cancer rate. The findings add on to the previous evidence that silicone-gel implants do not contribute to breast cancer.