Women Tell FDA That More Research Is Needed On Health Risks Of Breast Implants

Copyright 2019 NPR. To see more, visit AUDIE CORNISH, HOST: Advisers to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration have spent two days focusing on the safety of breast implants. What's emerged is a lack of scientific certainty about the risks implants pose to the millions of women who have them. NPR's Patti Neighmond reports. PATTI NEIGHMOND, BYLINE: The panel heard from manufacturers, plastic surgeons, researchers and women who got implants for reconstruction after mastectomy or for cosmetic reasons. Tara Huppco (ph) told the panel she was a healthy mom and bodybuilder in her mid-30s when she decided to get implants for aesthetic reasons. Problems started just weeks after surgery, when she became extremely exhausted and could no longer remember the names of colleagues at work. TARA HUPPCO: I had panic attacks that woke me in the night and anxiety that kept me shut in in my house. My hair stopped growing. My vision was blurry. I couldn't eat without pain and nausea. Every morning, getting