Silent Silicone
Using scanning electron microscopy and spectroscopic techniques, medical researchers have already detected the element silicone in the tissue of women with implants. Using this method investigators can't always prove that silicone came from the implant because small amounts of the element occur naturally. By using Raman spectroscopy Jose Centeno reported he identified specific molecules through the characteristic pattern of vibrations in the bonds that hold them together. He studied 16 tissue samples from women who had their implants removed. Twelve involved silicone. Six of the twelve, evidence that the material had migrated to the tissue that forms around implants. "Now we have direct proof that the material is leaking out into the body," says Dr. Reed Panos a collaborator with Centeno. Dr. Bruce L. Cunningham a plastic surgeon said its "interesting to know" the silicone is there "but it's not as interesting as knowing what effect it's having there."
In 1964 Dow Corning came out with the first silicone breast implant. The medical profession accepted them and Dow did not need the Food and Drug Administration approval. Dow supplied their own research on the safety of the implants.
Hundreds of thousands of women were implanted with the silicone implants. The surgeries were performed for reasons as breast reconstruction after mastectomies, breast augmentations and to correct birth defects. Soon after the women were implanted there were many vague complaints of body aches, pains and fatigue. The medical community said there is nothing to connect these ills and the implants. With further studies maybe the Scientific community can make the connection.
There are many women with the silicone silently spreading through their bodies. Years of doctors visits and test after test, only to be told they were imagining their aches and pains. The positive test of the silicone antibody in the blood stream did not seem to move the medical community. What type of proof do the doctors and Dow Chemical want? Deaths, there are many that I believe are related to the silicone implant. Connective-tissue diseases, I have met women living and dying with these diseases. Second generations are now emerging with the same problems as the mothers. Its believed to have been passed by the mother with silicone breast implants breast feeding her child. For 30 years I have lived with the silent spreading of the silicone in my body. My body is desperately fighting the silent invasion. There is an army of women fighting this war. We have no leader, no one helping us win the battle. Jose Centeno research is but a whisper in the quiet cover up, but it is better than the silence.
References
Holden, Constance (1994). Tracking a silicone leak. Science, 265, 1654
Silicone Antibodies
In 1992 the Food and Drug Administration banned the use of silicone breast implants because of the growing concerns that they may be harmful to the body. The silicone causes alteration in women's immune systems, which could be harmful to their health. The women's body produced antibodies against silicone which had leaked into the body.
IMMUNITY: resistance of the body to the effects of a harmful agent. Immunity occurs as a result of the antigen-antibody reaction that takes place wherever a foreign agent or its product enters the bloodstream.
ANTIBODY: a protein that is produced in the body in response to invasion by a foreign agent (antigen) , and that reacts specifically with it.
Antibodies are part of the body's natural defense against invasion by foreign substance. Each antibody is only effective against the particular antigen that stimulates its products. Almost all antibodies are formed in the lymph nodes, spleen, bone marrow and lymph tissue. They are usually proteins and are Gamma Goblin molecules.
The reaction of the body to the entrance of antigens is called the antigen-antibody reaction. Once the body responds to the invasion and begins to produce the antibodies it can continue to do so for many weeks to several years. Thus it is possible for immunity to last many months or years. Women seeking reconstruction or breast augmentation have two alternatives:
1. Saline implants that are encased in a silicone envelope. The body accepts saline. Although the envelope may bleed silicone into the body, causing the body to produce antibodies.
2. Flap surgery using the women's own tissue, fat, skin and blood supply to create a "breast," The body accepts itself.
References
Miller, B.,M.D., & Keane, C, RN (1972) Encyclopedia and Dictionary of Medicine and Nursing. W.B. Saunders Company: Philadelphia
