France recommends implant removal

The government, which says there is no cancer risk, is due to announce whether it will pay for the operation.

The implants by French firm Poly Implant Prothese (PIP) were banned last year after they were found to contain a non-medical grade silicone filler.

The UK medicines watchdog has said the implants have no safety issues but those with concerns have been told to contact their surgeon or clinic.

The French health ministry said that women with PIP implants did not have a higher risk of cancer than women with implants made by other companies, but said there were "well-established risks of ruptures."

Health Minister Xavier Bertrand urged the removal of the implants as a "preventive measure," but said that it was not "urgent."

The French government is expected to hold a news conference later to announce whether it will pay for the removal.

Campaign groups in France say at least eight cancer cases, including one death, could be linked to these gels.

The head of France's National Cancer Institute, Dominique Maraninchi, said last week that cases of cancer which had emerged in France in women with PIP implants were not necessarily linked to faulty implants.

PIP used non-medical grade silicone believed to be made for mattresses, according to the British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons (BAAPS). This meant the low-cost devices were more likely to split.

More than 300,000 implants are believed to have been sold globally by PIP over the last 12 years.

Of the 30,000 fitted in France, more than 1,000 have ruptured.

PIP went into administration last year and the use of its implants was banned.