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Breast implant-associated ALCL incidence reporting may be limited

Reporting of breast implant-associated anaplastic large-cell lymphoma may be limited in the United States and worldwide, according to recent findings.

The researchers contacted implantable device regulatory organizations and reviewed database queries for 40 countries to describe breast implant-associated ALCL incidence worldwide. Data undergoing analysis included demographic information, device characteristics, pathology, treatment modalities and outcomes, according to the findings.

Results showed 363 unique incidences of ALCL associated with breast implants in the countries investigated. When the authors searched for “anaplastic” and “ALCL” in the U.S. Manufacturer and User Facility Device Experience (MAUDE) database, they found 258 cases through September of 2015. Pathologic markers were used in 130 of those cases.

Other findings indicated that implant surface was textured in 50% of the cohort, compared with 4.2% for smooth surface (P = .0001). Explantation was the reported treatment in 91.9% of the cohort, followed by chemotherapy (30.8%), radiation (18.4%) and/or stem cell transplantation (6.6%).

There were five fatalities reported in the data set. – by Rob Volansky

Disclosure: One researcher reports consulting for Allergan, Mentor (J&J), and KCI (Acelity).