Women with breast implants may be at greater risk of dying from cancer because their tumours are harder to detect, researchers suggest.
A review of studies found the risk of being diagnosed at a later stage of breast cancer was increased by a quarter in women with cosmetic implants, compared with those without.
Further analysis showed those with implants had a third higher risk of death from breast cancer.
Concerns: Women with breast implants may be at greater risk of dying from cancer because their tumours are harder to detect, researchers suggest. This picture is posed by a model
Researchers say the findings should be ‘interpreted with caution’ because there may be other factors involved, but they speculate that implants create shadows on X-rays that may obstruct the view of experts screening for tumours.
As a result, early cancers may be missed until they grow to a more advanced stage, cutting the chances of survival.
The silicone gel in the implants may also make it more difficult for the breast to be sufficiently compressed during mammography checks to show up any problems.
Magnetic resonance imaging may be a more sensitive screening process for these women, the researchers suggest.
Breast implants are the most popular cosmetic procedure in Britain, according to the British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons. Around 25,000 women a year have them, including a small minority after cancer treatment.
The review analysed the results of 12 studies, all published after 1993 and conducted mainly in the US, northern Europe and Canada.
Worrying: The report found the risk of being diagnosed at a later stage of breast cancer was increased by a quarter in women with cosmetic implants, compared with those without. This is a picture of a woman having breast screening on mammogram machine
It found women with cosmetic breast implants had a 26 per cent increased risk of being diagnosed at a later stage of breast cancer than those without.
Analysis of a further five studies showed women with implants had a 38 per cent greater risk of death from breast cancer than those without.
The researchers, from a range of health institutions in Canada, say their review has limitations and more study is required, but there is ‘accumulating evidence’ that women with implants are likely to be diagnosed at a more advanced stage of breast cancer. Evidence also suggests their survival chances are adversely affected.
Fazel Fatah, a consultant plastic surgeon, said the findings should be treated with caution as they showed a link, rather than causation.
He added: ‘This paper does raise, however, the important issue of possible problems with early diagnosis of localised breast cancer in some women who have breast implants due to difficulty with mammography, although implants do not reduce the ability of women to feel lumps or abnormalities in their own breasts.’
Dr Caitlin Palframan, of the Breakthrough Breast Cancer charity, said: ‘The findings are not conclusive and more research is definitely needed.
‘We encourage women attending mammograms to inform their screening service that they have breast implants to ensure all breast tissue is completely examined.’
Mia Rosenblatt, of Breast Cancer Campaign, said: ‘The findings are interesting, but we need further robust research.
‘While implants can obscure breast tissue in X-rays, it is still possible to detect breast cancer in women with implants, but mammograms might need to be taken at different angles.’
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2317415/Do-breast-implants-raise-cancer-danger-They-make-tumours-harder-spot-says-report.html#ixzz2S3is2vrT
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