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Original Summaries of Selected CANCERLIT Abstracts.
Breast Implants and Breast Cancer Risk
Last modified on:
Tuesday, April 20, 1999 11:52:30
Copyright © 1994-2008, Information Ventures, Inc.
Controversy over breast implants has centered on the silicone contents; the polyurethane foam covering has been ignored. In one study (ICDB/95609474), levels of potential carcinogens, toluenediamines (TDA), found following implantation of polyurethane-covered breast prostheses into operated breast cancer patients were monitored in blood, urine and drainage. In the drainage the level of TDAs showed an initial steep drop, but rather than falling below detection limits it plateaued, which suggests continued degradation of the polyurethane foam. Urinary metabolite levels were above preoperation background in all samples collected. In plasma there is an initial lag period of 20 to 30 days, where little above background TDA was found after which levels rose to 1.5 to above 4.0 nanograms/ml for two different TDAs. Elevated levels were found up to two years postoperation. The urinary and plasma levels from these patients are in the same range detected from occupational exposure to toluene diisocyanate. The authors estimated that these plasma levels were sufficient for a risk of 1186 breast cancer cases per ten million women.
September, 1995
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