Although breast implants lowered the cancer detection rate on screening mammography, they increased the likelihood that cancers would be detected at smaller sizes on examinations, according to a study published in the April issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery.
Researchers from MedStar Georgetown University Hospital, Johns Hopkins University, and Reston Hospital Center in Virginia examined the breast cancers of 48 patients with implants and 302 without them. The breast cancers detected in the women with implants by self-examination or clinical examination were an average of 0.5 cm smaller than those in the women without implants (Plast Reconstr Surg, Vol. 141:4, pp. 833-840).
In contrast, the cancer detection rate on screening mammography was 12.9% lower for women with implants compared with the other group. The women with implants were also more likely to opt for excisional biopsy than image-guided core needle biopsy and to undergo mastectomy instead of breast-conserving treatment, compared with the women without implants.
"Our findings may have important implications for patient counseling regarding breast augmentation and breast cancer detection," first author Dr. Michael Sosin said in a press release.
