Ask Dr. Ulissey | September Q/A

Q. Is there any connection between breast implants and breast cancer?

A. The bottom line answer is probably not – not directly, anyway. At one point the FDA raised the question that a very rare lymphoma called ALCL might be related, but that is a hard sell. ALCL affects only about one person in 500,000, and ALCL of the breast is diagnosed in only about three women in 100,000,000. Yes, that is three in 100 million, so making an association like that is, in my opinion, difficult. In any case, it would be very rare, and I don’t think it should change a woman’s mind in whether to get implants or have them taken out.

As far as true breast cancers – ones that originate from breast tissue itself (not lymph or other tissues), quite a bit of research has been done on this subject, and there is no significant risk that we can find so far.

Q. I have implants and I am worried that a mammogram will make them rupture.

A. Don’t worry. We do mammograms on women with implants all the time and implant rupture is not an issue. The shell of the implant is designed to undergo mammography. However, there is a potential issue that the scar tissue that forms around the shell of the implant (called the capsule) could get a tear in it, and if a silicone implant is already ruptured (generally due to age of the implant), some of that silicone might leak out of the capsule and into adjacent tissue.

Michael J. Ulissey, M.D., is a partner at the Breast Diagnostic Centers of Auburn and Federal Way. In addition to taking care of patients locally, he continues to participate in research as an adjunct professor at the University of Texas Health Sciences Center. You can reach him at Mike@breastdiagnostic.com.