Hundreds of Australian women whose breast implants caused cancer and other serious diseases are preparing for a legal battle and taking on a pharmaceutical giant.
A class action lawsuit has been filed against Allergan, four years after the manufacturer issued the recall due to a link between the implants and Breast Implant Associated Anaplastic Large Cell Lymphoma (BIA-ALCL), a cancer of the lymphatic system.
Law firm Shine Lawyers wants to hear from women who developed cancer from the implants, are symptomatic, have had the implants removed and left out of pocket after explant.
Among them is Sarah*, a mother of three from Queensland, who left her pension three years ago to undergo an explantation.
She now wants compensation from Allergan for the thousands she spent removing the implants and the pain caused, which left her fearing she would die.
Sarah (pictured with breast implants) has joined a class action lawsuit against pharmaceutical giant Allergan
Sarah (pictured before getting implants in 2013) wanted to feel more feminine
Sarah decided to get breast implants in 2013, a life lesson she now regrets.
“I was flat-chested after breastfeeding three children – I couldn’t even wear a bra,” she told Daily Mail Australia.
‘I was healthy, exercised daily and loved life, but I wanted to feel more feminine. And I felt really good after I got them.”
Sarah began to feel tired and exhausted and gradually noticed other strange symptoms such as aching joints, hair loss and a yellow tint to her eyes.
“I didn’t think about it at the time and attributed the fatigue to having young children,” she said.
She was diagnosed with pericarditis, the swelling and irritation of the tissue surrounding the heart.
‘I had fluid around my heart. “I suffered from painful urinary tract infections, constant headaches, stomach aches, brain fog and all my joints hurt,” she said.
‘I suffered from night sweats where I woke up in a puddle of sweat.’
‘It affected every aspect of my life, including my business. I couldn’t enjoy everything I wanted with my three girls. I couldn’t even pick my youngest up and pick him up.’
Sarah started researching implants in 2019 after learning about the recall as her health deteriorated.
“The Christmas before I got my implants out, I thought I was going to die,” she said.
‘We were house sitting at the time. I was so sick that we had night doctors come in to give me medicine.’
Sarah pulled out of retirement to fund her explants (post procedure photo)
Sarah says it took six months to recover from the explants in 2020 (post procedure photo)
Sarah had the implants removed in 2020.
Reflecting on the harrowing ordeal, she said it could have been so much worse and considers herself one of the lucky ones not to have been diagnosed with cancer.
‘The day I got the explants, my little girl ran up to me and asked if I could finally pick her up; Still not being able to pick up my baby made me so sad,” she said.
‘It took six months to fully recover from the explants, but I was able to run and exercise again.’
“I’ve been to hell and back, you can’t put a price on that, but I’m so grateful to see my daughters grow up.”
Daily Mail Australia has contacted Allergan for comment.
At the time of the 2019 recall, at least five women from Australia and New Zealand had died from breast implant-associated (BIA) ALCL.
A further 100 Australian women had been diagnosed with (BIA) ALCL, including mother-of-five AnneMarie Sage Wood.
Shame and embarrassment kept her from seeking medical attention when she first noticed something was wrong with her breast implants.
“I had them assessed but was told the fluid was benign and that I had developed capsular contracture – the most common complication with implants,” she recalled in a Brisbane Times op-ed in 2019.
AnneMarie Sage Wood (photo) was diagnosed with BIA-ALCL in 2018
In 2018, she finally acted on her feelings and had the implants removed.
Then she received the shocking news: she had been diagnosed with ALCL cancer.
‘I was in total shock. I imagined the worst case scenario, that I would say goodbye to my family and die from this,” AnneMarie recalls.
‘I wish I had known more about the symptoms and risks of my breast implants; I was not informed or educated.”
Mother-two Julie Luezzi, then 40, received Allergan ‘Biocell’ implants in 2002.
She died 11 years later, three months after she was diagnosed with ALCL cancer.
“How can I ever tell my children that not only did they have to deal with this happening to their mother, but that she actually caused it?” Ms. Luezzi wrote in response to her diagnosis.
“This was by far the worst of anything that had happened.”
Julie Luezzi died in 2013, just months after she was diagnosed with BIA-ALCL
Mrs. Luezzi did not want her sons to know why she died, a secret kept from them for five years
“It was her dying wish,” Julie’s sister Donna Ohlsen later told the Sydney Morning Herald.
‘I kept that promise for five years, and I think that’s long enough. She would understand why.’
It is reported that one in 2,500 to 3,000 women with these implants will develop lymphatic cancer.
According to Shine Lawyers, many cases occur seven to eight years after the implants are inserted.
Symptoms of BIA-ALCL cancer include sudden swelling due to a build-up of fluid around the implant) or pain in a breast or armpit, and occasionally a lump or rash
“Some women will suffer scarring and disfigurement as a result of implant removal surgery, and some will suffer from health complications for the rest of their lives,” says Vicky Antzoulatos, Joint Head of Class Actions at Shine Lawyers.
‘It is appalling that a product like this can be put on the market and expose women to such serious risks. These implants were also used for breast reconstruction surgery on women who had already recovered from breast cancer, adding an extra layer of illness, anxiety and medical costs.
Visit Shine Lawyers for more information about the class action against Allergan or email allerganclassaction@shine.com.au.