Government outlines plans for review of PiP implants

The government has outlined its plans to conduct reviews into the safety concerns surrounding Poly Implant Prothese (PiP) breast implants.

To be conducted minister for quality Lord Howe, the report will be submitted in March 2012 and will assess the effectiveness of the Department of Health and Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency's reactions to the recent issues.

Matters that will be considered include what information was available, how advice was sought, what decisions were taken and how effective the overall level of action proved to be.

This will be accompanied by a separate report from NHS medical director Professor Sir Bruce Keogh, who will be assessing whether the cosmetic surgery industry as a whole needs more effective regulations.

It has already been confirmed that the NHS will support patients who wish to have PiP implants removed, after it became known that they are made from non-medical grade silicone and could be at risk of ruptures.

Lord Howe said: "I want to quickly establish the facts of what happened so we can, as far as possible, prevent anything like this from happening again."