Could Silicone Breast Implants Have Moved After 36 Years? Doctor Answers, Tips
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Could Silicone Breast Implants Have Moved After 36 Years?

I feel large lumps on the side of my breast and I am wondering if my implant moved. I had a mammogram 2 weeks ago. Could that have done it?

14 Doctor Answers | Asked by KEP in BREAST
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Could Silicone Breast Implants Have Moved After 36 Years?

This sounds suspicious for implant rupture with possible extracapsular spread. I would review the mammogram resutls and meet with a plastic surgeon.
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Silicone implants

Silicone or saline implants can move and like one of the other doctors said you may have a leak.  But I would get the lumps evaluated.
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Movement of 36 year old silicone implants

Yes, they could have moved.  Moreover, if they have been in that long, they have most likely sustained a leak.  I would go to a Board Certified Plastic Surgeon and be evaluated.  At this point they most likely  should be removed and replaced.

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+1

After 36 years gel implant replacement is in order

It is very unlikely that a silicone gel breast implant will withstand 36 years of daily wear. The implant material can often move as the implant ruptures with the development of smaller silicone cysts which are called granulomas. These late changes of implant rupture may be evident on your recent mammogram. With an implant this old, and the change in shape and lumps you describe, it is not worth further investigation with an MRI study. The time has come for an implant replacement... more
+1

Old silicone gel implants

You have driven 100,000 miles on 30,000 mile tires.  It is high time to see a plastic surgeon to evaluate your implants.  Failing to do so could cause you great health risks.
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Older silicone implants may need replacement

The older style liquid silicone filled implants were designed with thin shells- and do have a tendency to fragment and leak over time. Every surgeon has removed them. The newest generation of cohesive silicone gel implants are far superior, and should perform much more reliably. It appears that your problems started after the mammogram- it possible that the mammogram itself accelerated the demise of your implants (by squeezing them...). Seek out a board certified plastic surgeon- get an MRI, more
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It is likely that 36 year old silicone implants are no longer intact

After 12-15+ years, there is a higher chance that silicone gel implants will "fail".  The lumps that you are feeling may well represent scar tissue surrounding the implants that is a normal reaction to the foreign material of the implant, and possibly a reaction to silicone gel that has leaked out of the implants, quite possible after 36 years. It can occasionally occur that the trauma associated with  a mammogram can contribute to rupture of an... more
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Thirty year old silicone gel implants with lumps are presumed broken with silicone granulomas

Silicone gel implants that are thirty years old were very thin walled liquid gel implants and almost all of them have leaked or broken with subsequent capsular contraction making them hard and probably displace from their original position. I agree that a work up is important including an MRI. Unless there is evidence of a separate mass with calcification suggesting a cancer, I would not have a biopsy. I would recommend that you have a plastic surgeon with experience with this kind... more
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36 year old implants should probably be replaced

It is possible that the mammogram made a tear in the scar capsule around the implant, which could cause the lumps to appear. In all likelihood, implants from that vintage are not intact especially given your description and would need to be replaced. Implants today are made very differently.
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Broken implants

Sounds like the implants are broken and you feel lumps of silicone. You need to make sure it is nothing else and seek care from a plastic surgeon.
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Silicone breast implants have moved after 36 years

Yes it is possible they have moved, got ruptured in the pressure of the mammogram. But you need to see a boarded plastic surgeon ASAP. Regards from MIAMI DR. B
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Doubt they've moved- but should be removed!

I doubt there is any chance of 36 year old implants moving but I am extremely concerned about hem being ruptured.  If you did not notice these lumps before the mammogram it may be that the compression from the mammo caused a capsule to rupture.  It may have been there all along and you didn't notice it until afterwards. My concern is that there is almost a 100% certainty that the implants are ruptured.  Not because of the mammogram but because this is the nature of 36... more
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Lumps in the breast after a mammogram with 36 year old implants

As Dr. Aldea has said, these lumps need to be presumed to be potentially cancer and worked up appropriately and immediately.  Once that is ruled out, you might have ruptured old gel implants and the capsule around them might have broken in the mammogram allowing the gel to escape into the tissues forming the lumps.  An MRI would be the first choice study here, asap.
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Large lumps on the side of the breast MUST be Checked Immediately

36 year old silicone breast implants would NOT move and are most likely already deflated with the silicone gel remaining in the pocket. The "lumps" on the side of the breast need to be worked up immediately. This means a biopsy and or an imaging study. I would recommend a MRI (not a mammogram). The MRI would tell you the state of the implant and the new technology can accurately diagnose cancer of one tenth the size seen on a mammogram.
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