The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has confirmed that breast implants may cause a rare type of non-Hodgkin lymphoma called breast implant-associated anaplastic large cell lymphoma (BIA-ALCL), and there have been hundreds of reports of this disease associated with saline and silicone breast implants, including at least nine patient deaths. Unfortunately, in many of the cases of BIA-ALCL that have been reported to federal regulators, the cancer was diagnosed years after the initial implant surgery, which means women who have had breast implants for years may still be at risk for non-Hodgkin lymphoma side effects. If you have been diagnosed with anaplastic large cell lymphoma, and you believe your breast implants to be the cause, contact our consumer advocates at the Consumer Justice Foundation today. We are dedicated to protecting the rights of consumers harmed by allegedly defective medical products, and can help put you in touch with an attorney who has experience handling breast implant lymphoma cases.
January 2011 – The FDA releases a statement indicating that women with breast implants “may have a very small but increased risk of developing” anaplastic large cell lymphoma “in the scar capsule adjacent to the implant.”
May 2016 – The World Health Organization recognizes breast implant-associated anaplastic large cell lymphoma as a rare T-cell lymphoma that women can develop after receiving breast implants.
2016 – The Plastic Surgery Foundation and the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) publish information designed to help physicians understand breast implant-associated anaplastic large cell lymphoma and provide appropriate diagnosis and treatment.
June 2016 – The French National Agency for Medicines and Health Products Safety (ANSM) requests that manufacturers of textured breast implants perform biocompatibility testing to determine how living tissues react to textured-surface breast implants.
December 2016 – The Australian Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) provides a detailed analysis of the 46 confirmed cases of BIA-ALCL in Australia, including three deaths, and estimates the risk of developing the disease to be between 1-in-1,000 and 1-in-10,000 women with breast implants.
January 2017 – The journal Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery publishes a study reviewing federal database submissions related to BIA-ALCL in 37 countries, and finds 258 unique cases of the disease as of September 2015, including five deaths.
February 2017 – The FDA indicates that it has received a total of 359 medical device reports involving BIA-ALCL, including nine deaths. Of the 231 reports that included data on surface information, 203 involved textured implants and 28 involved smooth implants.
March 2017 – In an update of the FDA’s BIA-ALCL warning, the agency reports that its understanding of breast implant-associated anaplastic large cell lymphoma coincides with the WHO designation of the disease as a “rare T-cell lymphoma that can develop following breast implants.”
The potential risk of ALCL associated with breast implants has been evident for at least six years, since the FDA issued its first warning in 2011, and the agency has identified hundreds of cases of anaplastic large cell lymphoma tied to silicone and saline breast implants, including at least nine patient deaths, occurring during this time. Lawsuits brought against the manufacturers of breast implants may accuse the companies of:
Worldwide, an estimated five million to 10 million women have breast implants, and the FDA recommends that people with breast implants regularly monitor their implants for any changes, and schedule routine screenings, like MRIs or mammograms, as recommended by their doctors. For women diagnosed with breast implant-associated anaplastic large cell lymphoma, and the families of women who have died from the disease, financial compensation may be available for past and future medical expenses, pain and suffering, lost wages and wrongful death, which they can pursue by filing a breast implant lymphoma lawsuit against the implant manufacturing company. If you or a loved one has been diagnosed with BIA-ALCL, contact our consumer advocates at Consumer Justice Foundation today, to speak to qualified product liability lawyer about your case.
