Breaking News Emails
Get breaking news alerts and special reports. The news and stories that matter, delivered weekday mornings.
Dec. 18, 2018 / 11:40 PM GMT
By Lauren Dunn
French regulatory officials are asking breast implant manufacturer Allergan to recall its textured implants after the company lost approval to market the devices, NBC News has learned.
Textured implants used in cosmetic and reconstructive breast surgeries account for 85 percent of the French market. They are linked to Anaplastic Large Cell Lymphoma (ALCL), a cancer of the immune system. There have been more than 600 cases of the illness reported worldwide, most of them in the U.S. Sixteen women have died.
According to France’s National Agency for the Safety of Medicines and Health Products (ANSM), Allergan’s textured breast implants can no longer be marketed in France and Europe. Women in France and Europe who currently have the Allergan textured breast implants are advised to continue to be monitored by their doctors.
The decision comes after an NBC News investigation, in conjunction with the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, found that ALCL could be more common than previously thought.
The Food and Drug Administration is meeting next year to review the safety of all breast implants.