Over 14,000 Dutch women removed breast implants in 10 years amid safety concerns

Since 2015, more than 14,000 women in the Netherlands have had their silicone breast implants removed, according to research by Pointer using data from the Dutch Breast Implant Registry (DBIR). The registry, maintained annually by plastic surgeons, tracks the use and removal of breast implants.

Explantations—the removal of breast implants—have risen sharply since 2021, peaking at approximately 2,650 procedures that year. Although growth has since slowed, annual numbers remain higher than pre-2021 levels.

At the same time, the number of women opting for cosmetic breast augmentations has declined. In 2020, nearly 6,000 women received implants for cosmetic reasons. In recent years, that number has dropped to just over 3,000 annually. It is estimated that more than 200,000 women in the Netherlands currently have breast implants.

The actual number of explantations may be higher than 14,000, as reporting to the DBIR is voluntary and incomplete. Some women undergo the procedure abroad. Conversely, removals of temporary tissue expanders—which stretch the skin before permanent implants are placed—are included in the registry, although these cases are rare.

Lotte Maas, 46, had her implants removed after 25 years, citing health issues. “I experienced tingling and loss of sensation,” she told Pointer.

Marc Mureau, spokesperson for the Dutch Association for Plastic Surgery (NVPC), confirmed the rising trend. “The increase is mainly among women who had cosmetic breast augmentations and now seek removal due to Breast Implant Illness—a term for various symptoms associated with breast implants,” he told Pointer. “Recent research shows this link does not appear in breast cancer patients with implants. We also see more explantations without medical necessity, likely driven by safety concerns highlighted by media coverage in the Netherlands.”

Concerns over the safety of silicone breast implants date back to the 2010 PIP scandal, in which a French manufacturer sold unsafe implants, and the 2018 ban on certain Allergan implants due to the risk of BIA-ALCL, a rare form of lymphoma. All women with breast implants face an increased risk of developing BIA-ALCL.

According to the Dutch Health and Youth Care Inspectorate (IGJ), about 12 women with implants are diagnosed with BIA-ALCL annually. Since 2022, 28 new cases have been reported, bringing the total number of registered patients in the Netherlands since the first diagnosis in 1996 to 121.