Breast enlargement (breast augmentation) surgery

This is most beneficial for women in good physical and mental health, who have reasonable expectations of surgery that will improve the size and shape of their breasts. If your breasts are sagging, I may recommend a breast lift instead of, or in combination with augmentation. A consultation is needed to determine the best options to help you achieve your goals.

There is no difference in elemental Silicon concentration in the breast milk of women with and without implants. Silicon concentrations are up to & 10x higher in cows’ milk & infant formula feeds, than in breast milk.

There is no evidence to support this, with all published epidemiological studies showing cancer rates at the same levels as for women without implants, or lower.

The most recently published by Noels, E.C. et al, is a meta-analysis of 17 studies looking specifically at women who had undergone cosmetic augmentation found no evidence for any increased risk of breast cancer.

Noels, E.C. et al, Breast Implants and the Risk of Breast Cancer: A Meta-Analysis of Cohort Studies, (2015), Aesth. Surg. J, 35, 55-62

A study comparing breast cancer in women with and without implants shows both groups have the same 5-year survival rates from breast cancer, but women with implants present with smaller tumours and are 12 years younger at diagnosis on average – this is probably due to increased contact with their surgeons as a result of having had implants, meaning tumours are found earlier and younger.

After breast augmentation, you will be able to perform breast self-examination as before.

For women over 35, I advise you to have baseline mammograms before surgery and another 6 months after surgery, which will give screening services in the future a frame of reference to aid in detecting any future changes in your breast tissue.

If you have had implants and need mammography, a special displacement technique has been developed that maximises view of breast compared with standard mammography, so you should tell your radiographers so they can use this technique.

Analysis of 20 large studies shows no evidence to link silicone implants generally or gel-filled implants specifically, to connective tissue or autoimmune or rheumatoid-like diseases.

In 1982, a paper was published suggesting this (1). It was a poorly designed study based on observations in only 3 patients.  It should never have been published and it did great damage, not least because as evidence for a causal link between silicone and autoimmune disease is increasingly likely, the adverse reaction to this paper, especially among plastic surgeons, has set back research that might find it.

In 2000, a review of 20 large studies found no evidence to link silicone implants generally, or gel-filled implants specifically, to connective tissue, autoimmune or rheumatoid-like diseases (2).  However, more recently, the American FDA multicentred cohort study of outcomes in 99,993 for patients who had breast implants used for primary aesthetic augmentation and for breast reconstruction after cancer, revealed that patients who had primary implants also had higher rates of 3 autoimmune conditions: Rheumatoid Arthritis, Sjögren’s Syndrome and Scleroderma (3).

The debate has swung back and forth for 40 years with seemingly no clear evidence either way, because “association” is not the same as “cause” and because most studies that were published, were flawed in design despite passing the peer review process and being published – for example many were retrospective reviews of data from women who had their implants for too little time to draw meaningful conclusions.

 However, now that it is clear that (however rarely) implants can cause BI-A ALCL, a tumour of immune cells, logically there must be an interaction between the immune system and (textured) silicone implants and in recent years, there have been studies published which point to an association between breast implants and autoimmune disease.

 In Israeli study in 2008 (4) compared women with implants compared with otherwise matched women without implants.  This showed a statistically significant increase of 22%  autoimmune disorders, and the prevalence of Sjögren’s syndrome, Multiple Sclerosis and sarcoidosis each increased by at least 60%.

 In their report Breast Implant Illness: what’s the evidence? (download here) for the National Center for Health Research, Zuckerman and Srinivasan concluded: “Despite the controversies about autoimmune and CTD diseases, the evidence is quite consistent, finding increases between 22%-200% or more. When patient-reported symptoms are evaluated rather than classic diagnoses, and when studies with large numbers of women with implants for 7 years or more are included, the associations tend to be stronger and statistically significant. “

You should carefully weigh the risk that silicone implants may in some way stimulate their immune system and affect their autoimmune disease. Other patients can realistically conclude that risk of developing one will be increased significantly by implant surgery.
(1) van Nunen, S.A. et al. (1982) Arthritis Rheum, 25, 694-7
(2) Janowsky, E. C., et al. (2000) N Engl J Med, 342, 781-90
(3) Coroneos, C. J. et al, (2019) Ann. Surg. 269 30-6
(4) Watad, A. et al, (2008), Int, J Epidemiol. (2018) 47 (6) 1846-54

Women with breast implants seem to be more likely to develop this rare cancer of the immune system. This apparent link was confirmed, in 2016 and at that stage the World Health Organisation recognized “Breast Implant-Associated ALCL (BIA-ALCL) as a T-cell lymphoma that can develop in breasts following breast augmentation. The risk of developing ALCL is very low, but much higher in women with implants than it is in the general population.

Subsequently research has linked it to some of the textured implants that were previously considered to be safe, state of the art and the least likely to cause any complications when they we’re used.  In time, it became clearer that the Allergan texturing seemed particularly prone to what was and is still a relatively rare condition.

 BI-A, ALCL is a variant of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and although an individual’s risk of developing the condition is low, for those who do, it can, if not treated promptly, be a serious and life-threatening condition.  That said, in most patients it is treated successfully with surgery to remove the implant and the surrounding scar tissue and in some patients, there is also the need for some chemotherapy and radiotherapy.

These are persistent swelling and the presence of a mass or pain in or around the breast implant. Clinically the sign most often associated with an examination of the breast by a surgeon is a seroma, however, 1 in 5 patients with BI-A ALCL present with late onset capsular contracture.
Overall, any one individual’s risk is low – only 1 was found in the FDA study of outcomes published in 2019 for 99,993 patients who had had Allergan or Mentor implants (Coroneos, C. J. et al, [2019] Ann. Surg. 269 30-6).

If you are reading this having found a link to my site because you are reading up about BI-A ALCL having had breast augmentation in the past and this hasn’t set your mind at rest, then I urge you to seek out your surgeon and consult with them if you have any symptoms that have appeared sometime after your surgery – having previously had a settled result. If that isn’t practical, then come and see me.

Breast implants are treated by the human body as foreign material and so they are walled off by the body’s cells which weave a fibrous capsule around them. In a proportion of patients these capsules become firm, painful and cause distortion of the breast mound – so-called adverse capsular contracture. This can happen at any stage after surgery, but usually happens in the first 2 years after implantation.

The outer shells of implants are textured, and antiseptic irrigation is used to minimize infection and inflammation to combat adverse capsule formation but in a small percentage of patients this becomes problematic enough to warrant re-operation and occasionally, patients choose to have their augmentation reversed.

Breast implants have a finite life. At some stage they will break and need to be replaced. This is not a complication it is to be expected with passing time – unless a particular implant has been manufactured with a fault and ruptures unreasonably soon. Currently research findings and the claims of manufacturers of gel implants suggest they may last over 15 years – this may be less or more in practice. The corollary of this is that implant surgery may need to be repeated several times over the lifetime of a patient who embarks on this surgery when relatively young, and that all possible complications associated with this operation may occur at each operation.

A very small proportion of implants migrate from where they were placed during the operation, leading to breast asymmetry that may need surgical correction. This can be secondary to trauma soon after surgery, but it can also occur for no apparent reason. If caught early, it may be treatable using skin strapping for several weeks.

Up to 15% of patients experience altered (usually diminished) nipple sensation after implant surgery. This is due to nerve damage and may never improve – so if nipple sensitivity is an important factor in your sexual arousal, weigh this carefully before embarking on surgery.

Breast feeding should not be affected by implant surgery, but could be, at least theoretically, by inserting an implant through a peri-areolar incision.

I will take a full medical history, including any breast disease, surgery, or family history. If you have had mammograms, please bring along the results. We will discuss your desired breast size and shape and anything else related that you feel is important.

You will have a full examination with the focus on your breasts to assess their size, symmetry and shape and the quality of their surrounding skin. I will take photographs to plan your surgery and measure you for a sports-type bra, which will be used as a comfortable dressing over your surgical dressings after your operation.

Feel free to bring pictures from magazines to show me examples of women who seem to have breasts of a size that equate with your desired breast size – these will be useful in discussion.

Implants can be placed between the breast and the chest (pectoral) muscles, or beneath both the breast and the chest muscles, lying just superficial to the ribs. Skin incisions can be made in the skin crease below the breast mound (at the lower junction of the breast with the chest wall) or at the junction between the areolar and normal skin.

The method used to insert and position your implant will depend on your anatomy.

Before surgery, you will be assessed by your anaesthetist who will prescribe medications for your comfort and to lessen anxiety if need be.
On the evening prior or the morning of your operation I will review what we have discussed, and we will both sign your operation consent forms. I will then measure and draw guidance marks for surgery on your chest and breasts.

The operation usually takes around 3 hours depending on the technique used and is performed under General Anaesthetic so you will be asleep. After surgery, you will awake in a recovery area and soon afterwards be taken to your room.

A drain is placed under the incision in each breast to remove normal healing fluid. These are usually removed after a day or two and you can then shower normally.

Most patients go home a day or two after surgery on simple pain-relieving medications and a short course of antibiotics.

You will feel tired and sore for a week or two, but you will be able to move around and function relatively normally. You won’t need stitches removed as these will dissolve.

You can usually return to (light work) within a few days. So long as you can do so carefully, you can begin driving 7 – 10 days after surgery.

You should restrict yourself to light exercise for 2 – 3 weeks – avoiding lifting anything over 5Kg and aerobic exercise for at least 3 weeks.

New scars benefit from friction-free massage (using Vaseline, for instance, to lubricate the massaging process). Beginning to massage scars two to three weeks after surgery, will help them mature, soften and flatten faster than if left alone.

They should be protected from sunlight for 2 years to avoid them pigmenting differently to the surrounding skin and becoming a different colour permanently. Factor 15 sun block should be applied whenever they are exposed to any sun. Your scars will continue to mature for up to a year.

There is no difference. Breast augmentation is the medical term for breast enlargement surgery.

Breast implants are long-lasting but not considered lifetime devices. Replacement may be needed in the future depending on implant type and individual factors.

Yes. Breast enlargement can improve breast asymmetry, sometimes using different implant sizes or combined techniques.

When carefully planned and performed by a specialist plastic surgeon, breast enlargement can produce natural-looking results that suit your body proportions.

Breast enlargement increases volume but does not significantly lift the breast. A breast lift may be required if sagging is present.