The recent statement by the Welsh Health Minister, Lesley Griffiths, that in Wales breast implants produced by the French company Poly Implant Prothèse (PIP) will be replaced by the NHS is likely to put pressure on the government to extend this arrangement to other parts of Britain, where currently only removal is available on the NHS.
This announcement follows the admission to French investigators by the manufacturer’s founder, Jean-Claude Mas, that he had been aware of the use by his company of unapproved silicone gel in its products. He is reported as having said that the gel was less expensive and of better quality.
With an estimated 30,000 British women affected, it seems inevitable that litigation will ensue, especially where complications have arisen following rupture of these implants, unless a scheme is set up to provide adequate compensation for the victims.
