A short interview-style transcript excerpt where Sean asks Robert Whitfield MD about safest ways to remove breast implants. Whitfield explains the term "en bloc" (on-block) removal, likening it to removing an intact Easter egg to avoid spreading contaminants and emphasizing that surgeon experience, not inherent safety, determines whether surfaces like the ribs can be safely cleared.
But there are, there are procedures in which to remove them that are more safe, less safe for toxin exposure. So please explain to people what their options are and what they, what your recommendation is.
Yeah, en bloc is the term. It's a pathology term. So taking it out without being inside. So think of like we talked about with cancer. We don't want to be inside the cancer, obviously. We don't want to spread that around. So we're always trying to take things out intact. So I always use the analogy as I'm trying to take it out like an undisturbed Easter egg. Like, I don't, I don't want to crack the shell of the Easter egg. And, you know, if there is a contaminant, if there is a breast implant associated cancer, then all those things that are inside, that's where they should be, are left inside. And when I take everything out from a safety perspective, there's not a safety issue with taking things off of the rib surfaces. I mean, if, if you're concerned about that, then you should seek out someone with my level of experience and it will not be an issue. So that's just an experience issue. It's not a safety issue.
So if the doctor is not willing to do an on block procedure, it's probably because they don't have the confidence to do it.
You know, Sean, your doctor trained at the Mayo Clinic and did chest wall reconstruction.
