Breast Implants and Lupus

[Westkey]

Just wanted to know if anyone with Lupus has had breast implants and if so, have you had any issues.

Thanks

[panda2]

Hello Westkey!

You caught a fish with this post! This is my domaine entirely. Please take a look at some of my past postings and you will see the beginning of my journey with this very topic. I'm going to update soon as I've just been cleared for surgery and I'm seeing my surgeon next week to hopefully get a date for explant.

I've had breast cancer, mastectomy with reconstructed breast implants. This summer my very implants were recalled on the basis of causing a rare Immune system cancer. And of course Lupus and Lupus-like diseases are immune system diseases...

Is your question pertaining to yourself? What are your concerns?

Panda x

[Westkey in reply to panda2]

Thank you for your reply. I have Lupus been diagnosed for 9years along with other conditions. I was booked in to have breast implants at the end of October but after doing research have since cancelled the op. I already suffer and didn’t want to take the risk and have more health problems. I haven’t yet read your posts. But I will! Thinking of you and hoping all goes well with your explant xxx

[panda2 in reply to Westkey]

Hi Westkey,

Thanks for your kind thoughts. I believe we have to listen to our own instincts with this. It really sounds like you are! Yours is a very different situation from mine, so please don't feel the need to read past posts. (I wondered if you were considering explant, not implant.)

Though my Rheumatologist said we could likely never prove that the implants were behind getting a Connective Tissue Disease, she also said they could certainly create an argument that they could be. Our bodies do launch an immune system response to try and reject or protect us from any foreign bodies, so she said it was conceivable that my immune system could have gone haywire after trying to launch an attack against them or some of what they're made of. Creating antibodies, etc... I have known I would have to exchange or remove the implants eventually, so when I found mine to be implicated in the Breast implant associated Lymphoma, it was a no brainer to remove them for good and as soon as possible.

Our own emotional well being and how connected it is to the body is a different question all together. You are wise to consider this deeply; and I think quite courageous to cancel the op due to those reservations playing on you. Not least, that you are also struggling with your Lupus. The negative information coming out now is a real thing. Many have no trouble whatsoever, but plenty do. There is a Facebook group in the US of 80,000 women who all have similar symptoms they attribute to their implants. That's a lot of statistics!

If my surgery was elective, my Rheumatologist would have fought against it. Instead, she is helping me and has explained the challenges to my disease that surgery can bring. I will have to go off my Mycophenolate for several weeks and I've been warned the op and the missing medication is likely to cause a flare of disease activity for an indefinite time. I'm very nervous about that. But I'm more nervous about keeping these implants in.

Thanks for sharing your story. I'll bet it's a going to be a big help to people looking into this topic in the future.

Panda x

[milkwoman]

I got silicone breast implants at age 24. Was diagnosed with lupus (SLE) and Sjogrens at age 46. Had my implants exchanged at age 50 (old ones removed, new ones put in). No issues.

[panda2 in reply to milkwoman]

So glad you've had no issues milkwoman!

P x

[Hidden]

Westkey, I have no implants (I could definitely use them) because my back has been an issue my entire life. But, I would think that in most cases, any surgery ‘could’ (not will, but could) set off a flair as our bodies over react to everything. Since surgery utilizes cutting, I would think our bodies response would be to over stimulate our system to fight any infection. Maybe it depends on what your Lupus, or AI likes to attack? I would definitely make sure the doctors and surgeons understand all you are going through, what body systems seem mostly under attack with your specific problem, etc. Milkwoman has no problems with this, so maybe you won’t. But better to discuss it thoroughly with your doctor.