Robert Whitfield MD, who has treated over 1,500 explant patients, says about 35% show biofilm around implants. He attributes susceptibility to genetic predisposition: affected people typically have three to four dysfunctional immune pathways, while others don't develop illness from implants.
1,500+ cases.
Approximately 35%.
Three to four pathways.
Why do some people, in your opinion, get breast implant illness while others don't? Because obviously there's a lot of people with implants and some may not even notice an issue. And some obviously are starting to have issues.
Yeah, I think in the simple way to think about it, in our experience, which encompasses 1,500 plus, now 35% have biofilm. So I'll just say for everybody in the audience, so biofilm to me is an infection. I will always just say in those, regardless of their genetics, you take it out, they get better. Right. But what you're asking is the more complicated question is who's actually predisposed to have a problem? And so from genetics, you have to be, in my opinion, after looking at several hundred genetic reports on people with breast implants who have explanted, you have to have three to four of those pathways. I mentioned not working properly. And just like Candice, our patient advocate, she had all four that didn't work properly. Whether or not you know that that person is going to be uniquely susceptible to increasing amounts of inflammation, regardless of the device. Hip implant, knee implant, breast implant, dental implant.
