Robert Whitfield MD discusses breast implant illness and implant-associated cancers including lymphoma and squamous cell carcinoma. He recently published research analyzing 694 explant specimens and testified at FDA hearings in 2019 about these risks.
2019
Over 694 consecutive samples from explant specimens
Lymphoma and squamous cell carcinoma
Talk to us about breast implant illness and what some of those signs and symptoms are.
Sure. There's a series of cancers, breast implant associated cancers, whether they're lymphoma or squamous cell cancer. 2019 I gave testimony at the FDA hearings regarding developing some more research regarding breast implant illness. And we already discussed more research regarding the implant associated cancer. And I became president of a research foundation and we funded research to try to better characterize what was going on in breast implant illness. And some papers were published. So I recently published a paper with over 694 consecutive samples from explant specimens. So for everybody listening, your body forms a scar around an implant. That scar is not impenetrable, impervious. It's not like a fancy Gore Tex jacket that's going to protect you from the wet. If you stretch that apart, you can see through it, there's openings. That's kind of how the scar capsule is in someone's body.
