PIP breast implants don't increase risk of cancer in women

Researchers have found no evidence to higher risk of cancer in women who have PIP breast implants.

According to a review of PIP safety, women also do not need to have the faulty implants removed as a precaution although they may wish to have them taken out if they feel anxious, the Daily Star reported.

Around 47,000 British women are thought to have been given the implants manufactured by the closed French company Poly Implant Prothese (PIP).

The implants were filled with non-medical grade silicone intended for use in mattresses and have been linked to reports of rupture and swelling in the body.

In January last year, the Government announced that women given PIP breast implants on the NHS would be able to have them removed for free, with private firms told they should offer the same deal.

Any woman not helped by private firms would also qualify for NHS help. A review last year by NHS medical director, Professor Sir Bruce Keogh, concluded the implants were not toxic or carcinogenic.

But it acknowledged the distress caused to many women by having them in their bodies.

The study is published by the European Commission's Scientific Committee on Emerging and Newly Identified Health Risks (SCENIHR).