Learn why the use of hyaluronic acid breasts is not recommended

Hyaluronic acid is an authorized material that surgeons use as a filler in various soft parts of the body, such as the buttocks, the breast or specific areas of the face. Now then, is this hyaluronic acid breast treatment recommended? We clarify it for you.

What does the Spanish Agency for Medicines and Health Products say about hyaluronic acid in the breasts?

The Spanish Agency for Medicines and Health Products (Aemps) issued a statement in which it reported the «restriction of the use of the injectable filler implant Macrolane [one of the brands under which hyaluronic acid is marketed] for increasing breast volume for aesthetic purposes, because it may interfere with early breast cancer detection techniques».

Without the matter posing a serious problem, since the material is perfectly approved and has been applied frequently in all kinds of interventions, surgeons insist that it is still used in many clinics as a filler and in that sense it is more prudent to opt for another material.

And what about the specialists?

Specialists say that «in some cases it has been proven that hyaluronic acid can mislead the ultrasound specialist when performing a routine mammogram». Therefore, it is possible that this material may hide the presence of a tumor in the breast in certain tests.

The product does not present drawbacks when applied to other parts of the body, but it is preferable to avoid it to fill the breast due to the oncological implications described.

Who discovered these problems of hyaluronic acid breasts?

The French Health Products Safety Agency was the one that reported the problem to the AEMPS, as it did with the rest of the European authorities, and the need to restrict the use of hyaluronic acid breast implants.

French study

The decision was motivated by the results of a study that highlighted the inherent risks of injecting hyaluronic acid breasts, as it can interfere «in physical examination tests and in the reading of mammograms for the early detection of breast cancer».

In France, the only product affected by the decision is the injectable hyaluronic acid gel Macrolane manufactured by the Swedish company Q-Med AB. However, the Spanish agency warns that in our country there are other similar products that would be subject to the same warning.

Following the publication of the study in France, the Swedish health authorities informed the European authorities that Q-Med AB will cancel the marketing of Macrolane for the indication of increasing breast volume. According to the Aemps statement, the company itself, which is a division of Galderma, would inform professionals about its decision not to continue with that indication.

The Spanish agency, in addition to recommending in its note to professionals that they do not use the product for that purpose, suggests that women who have been treated with these injectable implants be informed so that they are aware of the risk.

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