Commission weighs into breast implant controversy with safety investigation

The European Commission will investigate the safety of breast implants by French company Poly Implant Prostheses, which were withdrawn from EU markets.

The Commission’s Scientific Committee on Emerging and Newly Identified Health Risks launched an investigation into the implants on 17 January. The committee says it will come to what it calls a “rapid” scientific opinion on the global incident rate of harm from the implants, their safety compared to other breast implants, evidence of removal difficulties and any secondary health issues surrounding them.