Goodbye silicone? A new era of breast reconstruction is on the horizon

Tissue-regrowing implants, which will enter human trials next week, could provide comfortable and accessible alternatives to silicone

Having an ice pack strapped to your chest - that's how some describe the experience of taking a walk in cold weather when you have breast implants. Silicone only slowly reaches body temperature once out of the cold, so that icy feeling can persist for hours. As well as being uncomfortable, for breast cancer survivors it can be an unwelcome reminder of a disease they would rather put behind them.

Every year, 2 million people worldwide are diagnosed with breast cancer and the treatment often involves removing at least one breast. But most choose not to have their breasts reconstructed; in the UK, it is only about 30%. Now a handful of startups want to change that, armed with 3D-printed implants that grow new breast tissue before breaking down without a trace. The whole implant is fully degradable," says Julien Payen, CEO of the startup Lattice Medical, so after 18 months you don't have any product in your body."