My Daughter is Slowly Dying Because She's Being Poisoned from Her Breast Implants.

Question

We cannot find a surgeon in Michigan that will remove my daughter's breast implants. They are poisoning her. She has Medicaid and no Plastic Surgeon will take it. She has been in pain, her immune system is failing, etc. There are too many medical problems that have developed in the last four years. She has been tested by at least 15 doctors. Can't someone help her? I cannot afford to pay a surgeon to remove them. She has been told she could die from the silicone shells. Please help!

Jed H. Horowitz, MD, FACS · Answer

Your procedures should always be performed by a #Plastic Surgeon who is board-certified and has a great deal of experience specializing in cosmetic #surgery. You will then greatly improve your chances of getting the result you desire, and, without the need for a revision surgery. It is suggested that you look at before and after photos of the surgeons actual patients, and read patient reviews. Gathering all of this information will help you make a well-informed decision.

Larry S. Nichter, MD, MS, FACS · Answer

Can Breast Implants Poison?I'm so sorry to hear about your daughter's serious illness. In cases that are difficult to diagnose, I would recommend going to an university affiliated medical center for a second opinion. What I can tell you though, is that her symptoms are probably not caused by silicone poisoning. Despite three decades of safety testing and monitoring of silicone breast implants, there is still a public perception that silicone breast implants are more toxic or dangerous than saline implants. The truth is that there has no known toxicity from silicone gel breast implants. In fact, silicone is one of the most common materials used in medical devices and implants.  There is no known toxicity from silicone gel breast implants. It has been studied by the FDA for more than three decades to establish its safety. Silicone is the most common material used in medical devices/implants. Examples include shunts that go from the brain to the abdomen (for hydrocephalus) which are left in for a lifetime, artificial finger joints, syringes, IVs, catheters (including ones that go next to the heart), surrounding pacemakers, and even oral anti-gas tablets.The one possible exception may by the PIP implant made in France (generally not available in the USA). Most of the concerns about the PIP implant were about the use of non-medical silicone and manufacturing problems, and do not relate to implants used in the United States by board-certified plastic surgeons. This is not to say that breast implants, like any implant, can have problems; they may have to be removed and are not meant to last a life time. Common reasons for replacement include: capsular contracture, rupture, infection, change in breast size, and pain—but not for toxicity.To answer the perceived toxicity of Silicone by the general public—this is quite a different matter.Breast implants have been around since the 1960s. About 15 years ago Connie Chung ran an exposé, Face to Face with Connie Chung, claiming silicone implants were responsible for different health problems. This led to lawsuits, a huge windfall for lawyers, and the subsequent ban on silicone implants for first-time breast augmentation patients went into effect. They were always available for breast reconstruction (e.g. after mastectomy) and replacement of existing silicone breasts. Also, please note that saline implants are still covered by a silicone envelope.Soon after, a ban on silicone implant use became worldwide. This lasted for years until more than 100 clinical studies showed that breast implants aren’t related to cancer, lupus, scleroderma, other connective tissue diseases, or the host of other problems they were accused of causing.June 1999, The Institute of Medicine released a 400-page report prepared by an independent committee of 13 scientists. They concluded that although silicone breast implants may be responsible for localized problems such as hardening or scarring of breast tissue, implants do not cause any major diseases such as depression, chronic fatigue syndrome, lupus or rheumatoid arthritis, etc.The Institute of Medicine is part of the National Academy of Sciences, the nation’s most prestigious scientific organization.Eventually, a federal judge dismissed/rejected the lawsuits, declaring them junk science and ended for the most part the barrage of lawsuits. This led to the present reintroduction of silicone implants years ago and their approval by the FDA. Interestingly enough, most of the rest of the world reintroduced them many years prior to the United States.

Jourdan Gottlieb, MD · Answer

Most university hospitals and the University physicians who practice there accept Medicaid. If the surgeon's feel that these should be removed it will be up to Medicaid to decide whether they feel it is medically necessary. Best wishes

Peter A. Aldea, MD · Answer

While your daughter may be in dire medical straits she is not dying from silicone poisoning and her physicians need to work harder to understand what is wrong with her rather than blaming her breast implants for her condition. 

	Many scientific studies done since 1991 have repeatedly shown there is NO breast implant associated disease. Even the lawyers who made billions suing breast implant manufacturers out of existence have changed their tactics and were instructed by the judge overseeing the Dow bankruptcy suits to stop using this terminology. it has repeatedly disproven and flies in the face of logic. Tens of millions of women have and enjoy breast implants all over the word. If even a fraction of a percent of them suffered such diseases as result of the silicone shells we should have been seeing tens of thousands of women with breast implants presenting with them. This is not he case.  The vast majority of breast reconstruction after mastectomy patients undergo reconstruction with breast implants. These women have a weakened immune system due to chemotherapy , malnutrition, radiation and depression. We should be seeing a huge rate of "silicone poisoning" in them if this entity truly existed. And yet, we do not see it in these ladies. Finally, silicone is present in every prosthesis and implant made out there from pacemakers, heart valves, defibrillators, artificial joints, shunts, hernia patches, artificial blood vessels and  many others. Do these patients manifests high rates of "silicone poisoning"? No. silicone is found in many neutral products, in copiers even in syringes where it lubriicates and allows the piston to slide within the syringe. As a result people receiving frequent njections, such as diabetics requiring Insulin, have much larger microscopic  amounts of Silicone in heir bodies than women with leaking breast implants much less intact implants. Do diabetics have a high rate of "silicone poisoning"? No. 

	If the plaintiff lawyers, not an altruistic, dedicated to preserving truth, fairness or real justice, have reluctantly given up this discredited "silicone poisoning" tactic, shouldn't some doctors do the same? It is not hard. All they have to do is throw away some preconceived notions , read scientifically authored studies written in the past 20 years and practice modern Medicine. 

	The fact that 15 doctors have not figured your daughter's problem makes it a challenge but should not stop her from seeking help. Removing the implants is a cosmetic procedure which few insurance companies would pay for. But odds are such a procedure will not improve her condition because the overwhelming evidence out there has disproven the notion of "silicone poisoning". What she needs is better diagnosis not a simplistic answer.

My Daughter is Slowly Dying Because She's Being Poisoned from Her Breast Implants.

Answers (4)

Answer: Silicone Poisoning

Answer: Silicone Poisoning

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Everything you need to know about Breast Implant Removal

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My Daughter is Slowly Dying Because She's Being Poisoned from Her Breast Implants.

Answers (4)

Answer: Silicone Poisoning

Answer: Silicone Poisoning

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Recommended reading

Everything you need to know about Breast Implant Removal

Our mission is to create a world where every investment in modern beauty is Worth It.