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    Fungi-Filled Breast Implant Removed, Surgeon’s First in 20+ Years

    Jan. 2023 case of fungi visible in implants upon removal is believed to mark third known case nationally since 2015.
    By Anthony BolstadJanuary 18, 2024

    Video shared by a board-certified plastic surgeon shows a set of aged saline-filled breast implants. Both of the implants are discolored, and dark particulate matter swirls inside one of them.

    After more than 20 years in practice, it’s the first implant like it the surgeon has ever seen.

    Board-certified plastic surgeon Dr. John M. Pierce removed the implants in January last year for a woman who was experiencing breast implant illness symptoms.

    John M. Pierce, MD, Desert Plastic Surgery, fungi-filled breast implant, saline
    John M. Pierce, MD, Desert Plastic Surgery

    In private practice since 1998, the surgeon had occasionally seen Betadine in removed breast implants, but says what he saw in the operating room that day looked different.

    “I wouldn’t believe it if I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes,” he shared.

    He filmed the short video after surgery and while still in the OR, then sent the saline-filled prosthesis to pathology.

    Pathology confirmed the presence of “Bipolaris species,” practice manager Christina Pierce said.

    The patient, previously suffering from breast implant illness, reports improvement—less hair loss, less inflammation, less fatigue, more energy, and says she “just feels better overall,” according to the practice.

    The Scottsdale, Ariz. plastic surgeon finds himself doing more implant removal surgeries these days, and no longer does primary breast augmentation at his Desert Plastic Surgery practice.

    Mold spores can be as small as two microns in diameter according to the U.S. EPA, which is about 1/12,000th of an inch.

    Visible mold is rare in removed breast implants, with most viral videos showing mold that had grown over years, after explant surgery and while implants were still in a patient’s possession.

    Mold Visible in Implanted Implants Rare

    “This is the first that I have seen in over 20 years.” — John M. Pierce, MD, Scottsdale, Ariz.

    “Over 30 years of practice, I’ve never seen mold or anything close to it that appears in an implant that has been in somebody’s body.” – Robert Applebaum, MD, Beverly Hills, Calif.

    “I’ve never seen this happen in any of the patients that I’ve removed [implants] from.” – Richard J. Brown, MD, Scottsdale, Ariz.

    “I’ve never seen it either after 20 years in practice.” – Anthony Youn MD, Troy, Mich.

    “I have never seen this in real life.” – Martin Jugenburg MD, Toronto, Canada

    Patients Melissa Lima and Anne Ziegenhorn shared rare exceptions in 2022 and 2015 respectively, where mold was present inside of or on the implants upon removal.

    This case marks another instance of the rare phenomena.


    Updated for clarity on Jan. 23, 2024: This article was previously titled, “Surgeon Removes Fungi-Filled Breast Implant, First in 20+ Years.”

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    Objective. Independent. Informative. Public interest reporting on the practice of plastic surgery not affiliated with or funded by any surgeon, device manufacturer, or practice.

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