Cancer Detection ‘May Be Masked’
Surgeons warn that filler injections can trigger inflammation, painful infections and hard scar tissue known as granulomas, which may make it harder to detect early breast cancer on scans.
Breast cancer affects 1 in 7 women in the UK, more than 44,000 women every year.
BAAPS says any procedure that could potentially obscure early warning signs of cancer is “simply indefensible.”
In 2012, the breast filler Macrolane was withdrawn from the market due to safety concerns. But despite that warning sign, surgeons say similar products are still being injected into breasts today, often with little oversight.
Infection, Pain and Surgery to Put It Right
Complications linked to breast fillers include:
- Severe mastitis (painful breast infection)
- Abscesses requiring surgery
- Hard, misshapen lumps
- Migration of filler to other areas
- Long-term pain
- Interference with breastfeeding
In some cases, women have required major operations to remove the material.
“The breast is not just cosmetic tissue; it is a gland with a biological function,” BAAPS President Nora Nugent says. “Infections can prevent breastfeeding and cause lasting damage.”
‘Lunchtime Boob Jobs’ with Little Reward
Fillers are often marketed as a quick, non-surgical fix for post-pregnancy volume loss, sagging after weight loss and lack of upper fullness
But BAAPS says the amounts typically injected do not significantly increase size and results often look unnatural over time.
“Women are being sold the illusion of a quick fix,” says Nugent. “In reality, the aesthetic improvement is minimal, while the risks are very real.”
Shockingly Weak Regulation
Perhaps most concerning, surgeons say, is that almost anyone can currently inject fillers, regardless of medical training. There is no mandatory requirement to be a surgeon and no consistent regulation of clinic settings. There is also no guarantee that practitioners can manage serious complications.
BAAPS, alongside BAPRAS, the Joint Council for Cosmetic Practitioners (JCCP), and the Royal College of Surgeons of England, has already pushed for high-risk cosmetic procedures like Brazilian Butt Lift (BBL) with fillers to be restricted to specialist surgeons. But breast fillers remain largely unrestricted.
‘There Is No Place for This’
Safer, established alternatives exist, including fat transfer, implants and breast lift surgery, when carried out by properly trained plastic surgeons.
While these procedures are more involved than a quick injection, BAAPS says they offer far better long-term outcomes and a significantly improved safety profile.
Elaine Sassoon, speaking on behalf of BAAPS, said:
“The injection of synthetic fillers into breasts carries unacceptable risks — from infection and deformity to the potential masking of breast cancer. In the presence of safer and more effective alternatives, there is simply no place for this practice in the UK. We are calling for a ban.”
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