Susan AxelbyA woman who developed a rare type of cancer linked to her breast implants has warned that others with similar implants could be ‘walking like ticking time bombs’.
Susan Axelby, 68, was recently paid £57,000 by Allergan Limited after falling ill with breast-implant associated anaplastic large cell lymphoma (BIA-ALCL).
It is believed to be one of the first payments of its kind linked to Allergan breast implants in the UK.
She had her breasts removed to avoid the risk of hereditary breast cancer – but went on to develop cancer after the implants.
Regulators have received at least 106 reports of BIA-ALCL associated with surgery in the UK, involving six manufacturers.
Rare risk
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is currently collecting data on women who are affected.
In her first interview, Susan said BBC Radio 4 Woman’s Hour programme for the ordeal – and while her case is very rare, she has a warning for others.
“I think, not so much me – I’m almost 70 – but there are young girls because they wanted a breast augmentation and they walk around like ticking time bombs,” she said.
“They have no idea what’s in their bodies now — and if it’s happened to me and some other people, you know, they might be walking around like that.”
Susan got the implants in Sheffield, where she lives, after having her breasts removed to protect her from an inherited risk of cancer.
A few years later, she noticed some swelling in one of her new breasts, which felt warm to the touch.
‘Blow up’
“I went back to the hospital and they drained 500 milliliters of fluid out of it,” Susan said.
“Then I got home and it swelled up again.
“I went back again and they gave me the same amount – within a month, that was it.”
Susan was referred to a surgeon, who discovered she had BIA-ALCL – a cancer of the immune system, not a type of breast cancer, that can develop in the scar tissue around breast implants.
“I didn’t believe it,” he said.
“I was in denial because I had my breast removed to prevent cancer and now I have cancer.
“I thought, ‘How is this possible?’
The surgeon told Susan that the implant had to be removed.
“He said, ‘we’re going to have to take it out and take the breast out again,'” she said.
“And they said I could never, ever get another implant.
“The only way to deal with it is to take things from another part of my body and rebuild it.
“I just told him, ‘I can’t go through this again.’
“I have bad days”
Susan no longer has implants, breast tissue or nipples.
“Actually there is nothing,” he said.
“There’s just a straight line all the way up the top of my body.”
It has affected her confidence and well-being.
“I don’t like to be seen without clothes and that includes my husband quite a bit, although he’s not bothered at all.
“I have bad days.
“I still have issues with my anxiety and depression, so it’s never gone away.”
Susan had sued Allergan, she said, not just for her sake but for others.
The claim was settled and Allergan, a US pharmaceutical company, paid Susan £57,000 in October 2023, with no liability.
Scientists say BIA-ALCL could be a reaction to the textured surface of the implant or a bacterial infection.
As of December 2023, the estimated incidence of BIA-ALCL, based on confirmed cases requiring surgery in the UK, is one per 14,200 implants sold.
Other victims in the UK are coming together to take legal action.
And another group is seeking compensation from Allergan on behalf of 60,000 women from the Netherlands.
In 2019, Allergan issued a voluntary worldwide recall of Biocell breast implants and tissue expanders and no longer manufactures these types of implants.
The MHRA says that people with breast implants but no signs or symptoms of BIA-ALCL do not need to be removed or checked.
However, anyone who has unusual signs or symptoms, such as swelling around their breast implant, should see a doctor.
