Cancer warnings could be put on all breast implants a decade on from scandal that left women 'dying in silence'

Ministers are considering putting a cancer warning on all breast implants a decade after women had ‘a cocktail of chemicals intended for mattresses’ put into their bodies.

Experts and MPs are calling for tighter regulation and better support after the PIP faulty breast implant scandal left women – including breast cancer survivors – ‘suffering and dying in silence’.

Health minister Maria Caulfield pledged on Monday to consider a so-called ‘black-box’ warning on breast implant packaging like in the US.

It came during a debate on the faulty breast implant scandal which saw 47,000 British women given ‘ticking time bomb’ implants made by Poly Implant Prothese (PIP).

PIP implants were outlawed in 2010 when they were revealed to be made with substandard silicone and up to six times more likely to rupture.

Victims of the scandal have reported a wide range of serious side-effects as experts say they are linked to a raft of health problems including the new form of cancer.

Anyone with a PIP implant can officially apply to have it removed by the NHS, but Labour MP Fleur Anderson said: ‘Many applications have been turned down, leaving women with a ticking time bomb in their body.

‘They are unable to afford to get their implants removed privately, are worried that they will rupture further, and are experiencing clear side-effects.’

The MHRA acknowledged the risk of cancer for all breast implants but said PIP implants are not at greater risk than any other. 

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Source Mail Online, 31 January 2023