Two years ago, I found a lump in my breast. After I'd had a scan, they found that my left silicone breast implant had ruptured after being in place for 12 years.

That July, both my implants were removed and replaced with new silicone implants. I was amazed they were still using silicone. After the operation, I was in enormous pain, particularly in my left breast, which was very swollen and hard as a rock.

Two months later, I found two small holes in my left breast, which was also very black looking. By the end of the month, the implant was emerging from my chest.

It turned out that my left breast had become infected. It was then removed in October and was not replaced for at least three months to allow the infection to clear.

In January, I had a new implant put in. I suffered several months of excruciating pain and numbness, and lumps began to appear under the breast. Doctors eventually discovered that all my lymph glands were very swollen.

In April 1999, I finally had both implants removed completely. During the operation, doctors found silicone around the lymph glands in my armpit and, eventually, they found that I had silicone poisoning distributed around my body.

This has caused major deformity and I am constantly in some pain or another in my legs and arms or shoulder.

Last November, I started regular weekly detox using oxygen therapy. Since having the treatment, nearly all my leg pain has gone. I still have the numbness on one side, and severe chest pain on and off although, in general, I am a lot better than I was six months ago.

I now belong to the Silicone Survivors Support Group and I receive about 40 e-mails a day from around the world from sufferers of silicone. I recently read that implant surgery is up by 40 per cent this year in Great Britain.

It is criminal that silicone implants are still available on the market here, considering they have been banned elsewhere. DB, Croydon

(dawn_beaven@hotmail.com)