Do Implants Hide Breast Cancer?

Rumors that implants get in the way of breast cancer testing aren’t the only things that are fake

Focused on Health - October 2009

By Rachel Winters

It seems like women everywhere are getting breast implants. In 2008, more than 300,000 women of all ages and backgrounds in the United States had cosmetic breast surgery, according to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons. This number is an 803% increase since 1992 and is expected to continue to grow.

While the FDA calls the surgery “safe,” does having breast implants make it harder to detect breast cancer?

“The question of how implants affect breast cancer risk and screening tests, like the mammogram, is a question that many women ask,” says Therese Bevers,  M.D., medical director of the Cancer Prevention Center at M. D. Anderson. “The good news is that implants do not increase breast cancer risks. But, they also don’t decrease them because women with implants still have their natural breast tissue.”

Breast awareness with implants

If you have implants, M. D. Anderson recommends increased breast awareness and promptly reporting any changes to your doctor. Getting used to how your breasts look and feel after implants may take women a little while to get used to, but that doesn’t mean they can’t notice the signs of breast cancer.

“The person most likely to find a lump in the breast is the woman herself,” Bevers says. “With implants, becoming familiar with your breasts is more difficult at first because the breast will have a different texture. It also will have new folds or dimples. But after a woman knows her new breasts, having implants does not get in the way of her noticing a change that might be cancer.”

Women with implants might even be more likely to notice changes to their breasts.

“Noticing breast changes can sometimes be easier for women with implants because the implants push the natural breast tissue to the outside of the breast, making a lump easier to feel,” says Elisabeth Beahm, M.D., F.A.C.S., a professor in the Department of Plastic Surgery at M. D. Anderson. “Also, most women with implants are more aware of their breasts and changes to their body.”

For any woman, checking your breasts regularly can lead to early detection.

“About 90% of breast cancers are found because the woman felt a lump herself. Women who seek out breast implants more are likely to pay a lot of attention to their breasts. This means that they may detect breast changes more often,” Beahm says.

Screening guidelines for women with breast implants

While being familiar with your breasts is good advice for women with natural breasts and for women with implants, the way that breast cancer screening exams are done are different for each.

M. D. Anderson advises women to get annual mammograms after age 40. Mammograms take a detailed picture of breast tissue so that doctors can spot lumps or tumors. During a mammogram, images are collected by flattening the breast between two mammogram plates. Implants can get in the way of this flattening, which makes it difficult to see the breast as clearly.

This doesn’t mean that women with implants can’t be screened for breast cancer. It just means that women with implants need additional pictures taken during the mammogram.

“Mammograms for women with implants require additional views,” Bevers says. “We do the standard views with the implants. Then we do views where we push the implants out of the way so that we can get views when the breast tissue is flattened. Although it is a more complex process, we can still get good images of the breast.”

Women also should be aware that the size of the implant can affect breast cancer testing.

“Very large implants can be more difficult to image with mammography,” Beahm says. “So we suggest that women concerned about breast cancer not get extremely large implants. Stick with implants that fit your body type.”

Some women with implants are concerned that the flattening that takes place during a mammogram might damage their implants. Cases where implants have been damaged by mammograms are extremely rare. In addition, the benefits of getting a mammogram are greater than any concerns a woman may have.

“Women ask, ‘Are my implants going to break during the screening exam?’” Beahm says. “This is not a common problem.  It is definitely not a reason to delay or avoid getting your mammogram. Even though we may not get quite as good a view of the breast as before, we can still spot a lump or tumor without damaging the implant.”

Radiation treatment can damage implants 

If you have implants and get breast cancer, there is a good chance that you will need your implant removed. This is true even if you don’t need a mastectomy. A mastectomy is the removal of one or both breasts.

“A foreign body like an implant and the radiation needed to fight breast cancer don’t do well together,” Beahm says. “Radiation treatment on breast cancer patients with implants can lead to heavy scaring, pain, change in the shape of the implant, infection and even loss of the implant and infection.”

If you get implants, educate yourself about breast cancer

You should get tested for breast cancer before and after you get implants. You also should talk to your doctor about your family history of cancer.

“If you get implants, don’t just get a mammogram before the surgery,” Beahm says. “Get one six months after to serve as a baseline for future tests. There can be changes in the breast after any surgery. It may seem like a lot of time, trouble and money, but it’s well worth it.”

When getting tested for breast cancer, you must remind your doctor, radiologist and gynecologist that you have implants at every appointment.

Although having implants will not increase your risk for cancer, it is important for women with implants and natural breasts to know that anyone can develop the disease. Protect yourself by being aware of your own breasts, talking to your doctor about your family history and following current breast cancer screening guidelines. 

Related Links

Silicone Breast Implant Study and Breast Cancer Risk (National Cancer Institute)

Breast Cancer Screening Guidelines (M. D. Anderson)