Silicone implants can increase a woman’s risk of arthritis, stillbirth and skin cancer, says study

The study has found that women who underwent silicone breast implants had four times greater risk of developing skin cancer and 4.5-fold increased risk of having a stillbirth. (Source: File Photo)

Silicone breast implants are fast gaining popularity among women all over the world. But turns out, it comes at a price. Researchers have found that women who underwent silicone breast implants had four times greater risk of developing skin cancer and 4.5 fold increased risk of having a stillbirth. As compared to women with saline implants, the ones with silicone implants were found to be at a double risk of developing surgical complications, particularly scarring around the implant.

The researchers from the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston examined nearly 100,000 people to conclude the study. Out of which, approximately 80,000 people who participated in the study had silicone implants and the rest received implants filled with a saline solution, during the course of research. The study found that women with silicone implants had six times higher risk of arthritis, 45 times higher risk of stillbirth and 40 times higher risk of skin cancer than people without silicone implants.

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Talking about the research, Dr Mark Clemens, an associate professor in the department of plastic surgery at MD Anderson Cancer Center said, “We are reporting an analysis of the largest prospective study to date on silicone breast implant safety. We are sharing critical information on complication rates and rare associations with systemic harms. This data gives women important safety information about silicone breast implants to have real expectations and to help them choose what is right for them.”

While Dr Diana Zuckerman, President of the National Center for Health Research, told DailyMail.com, “Women shouldn’t panic but what it does tell us is that there’s something going on and it’s different than what women have been told for the last two decades. It is still a cause for concern and you have to think that all those increased risks add up. Not all women are getting all these diseases but it’s some getting one and some getting another that could be statistically different.”