Anyone had Breast implant illness

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Yogatyme
Yogatyme Member Posts: 2,349
edited June 2020 in Breast Reconstruction

Has anyone has BII? My niece has been sick since Christmas with a variety of issues including a month long headache (bordering on migraine level of pain), eye pain and vision problems, exhaustion, rash, fever, general body aches ( flu like). No one seems to be able to identify what’s going on. She’s had exams and tests by ob/gyn, pcp, ent, eye dr, breast surgeon, and has an appt w neurologist in a few weeks. I am concerned she may have BII but she was told she has not had them long enough for this to develop. She had reconstruction about 2 yrs ago. Any suggestions?

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  • Beesie
    Beesie Member Posts: 12,240
    edited February 2020

    There are two different conditions that fall under the general heading "breast implant illness". The one in the news of late is BIA-ALCL, which is a form of lymphoma. Because this is cancer, it is scaring a lot of women into switching out their implants, although the incidence rate appears to be just a small fraction of a percent and the condition is symptomatic (which is why implant removal is not recommended if there are no symptoms).

    The other concern is that a small percent of women have an autoimmune reaction to the silicone. This is more similar to an allergic reaction. Coud this be what's going on with your niece?

    It may be that her doctors have ruled out her implants being the cause of her health issues because they are just thinking BIA-ALCL and may not be considering that this could be an autoimmune condition, which could be brought on by the implants or could possibly be totally unrelated. Has she been checked out for autoimmune diseases?

    https://www.healthline.com/health/breast-implant-illness#causes



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  • Yogatyme
    Yogatyme Member Posts: 2,349
    edited February 2020

    Thanks, Beesie. I don’t think she has been tested for autoimmune disorders. I will encourage her to consider this. It’s unsettling to say the least.

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  • Cowgirl13
    Cowgirl13 Member Posts: 1,936
    edited February 2020

    I would also think it could be autoimmune, in fact, could be a strong possibility.

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  • Yogatyme
    Yogatyme Member Posts: 2,349
    edited February 2020

    Thanks Cowgirl!

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  • jleighs
    jleighs Member Posts: 1
    edited June 2020

    I have BII and it started a month and a half after my implant surgery. I had a bilateral mastectomy in March 2019, with expanders put in place. I never had a problem with those. I had silicone implants put in November 2019. By January of this year, I had developed extreme fatigue, hair loss, joint pain, dry eyes and dermatitis. I saw my PS a few weeks ago and she said I also have capsular contracture, so that is causing some pain. I never had these types of problems before the silicone implants. I had blood work done and the autoimmune blood work came back borderline for various issues. I have explant and capsule removal surgery scheduled for early July. I would much rather feel normal again then have boobs. Many women don’t have implant issues and some do. I think BII is very real and it can affect each person differently. Some doctors don’t believe in it and some do. I hope your niece finds some answers.

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  • Yogatyme
    Yogatyme Member Posts: 2,349
    edited June 2020

    Thank you so much for your response. I’m so sorry you are going through this and hope the surgery will give you some relief. My niece continues to get no answers and this is complicated by all the covid restrictions. My best to you. Thank you again.

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  • LillyIsHere
    LillyIsHere Member Posts: 830
    edited June 2020

    I am going through similar situation with my right side of the implant. Right now I'm in 3 antibiotics. I have appt with PS on Monday and I will ask him for some kind of clue on what is going on. Not only the implant got red, hot and swollen, but the same side of the neck is swollen and I'm having ear aches. No one seems to find out what is going on. I do feel dizzy and have body aches but I have been blaming letrozole.

    Should I ask for blood test for autoimmune? I didn't even know that existed :)

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