Britain is looking into new evidence about the risks from breast implants made by a now-closed French firm at the heart of a global health scare, the government said on Saturday. The French government has already advised the 30,000 women in France who bought implants from Poly Implant Prothese (PIP) to have them removed due to concerns that the prostheses might rupture.
Britain has not yet followed suit and both countries say there is no link to cancer from the implants. But British Health Secretary Andrew Lansley said new data had emerged and the government would have a fresh look at all the evidence. "We've seen conflicting evidence and, in particular, yesterday we received information from one of the large private providers of cosmetic surgery that said they now had data that they had not previously disclosed to the regulator," he said. "I'm concerned and unhappy about the consistency and quality of data that has been provided ... If there are any safety concerns, we will act."