As many as 1000 Australian women who received breast implants will be diagnosed with Anaplastic Large Cell Lymphoma (ALCL), the Therapeutics Goods Administration has warned.

On Tuesday the national watchdog advised women with breast implants to talk to their doctor if they notice any changes in their breasts, after 46 cases of rare anaplastic large cell lymphoma in Australia were linked to breast implants, three of which led to death.

Health advisers and clinicians had previously thought the risk of developing ALCL was remote: between one in three million and one in 50,000.

But the TGA has now updated its estimate to one in 1000 women with breast implants.

ALCL is still classified as a rare cancer.

While women and health professionals have been encouraged to monitor implants for any changes, and report cases to the TGA, the risk of developing ALCL due to implants remains low and the authority does not recommend preventative breast implant removal in patients without symptoms.

The TGA has been monitoring the situation along with international partners, since the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in January 2011 released a warning about a low risk association between implants and developing ALCL.

The FDA received 258 medical device reports of breast implant-associated ALCL between August 25 2010 and September 10 2015, including three deaths since 2007.

The US watchdog estimated that there had been 100-250 known cases of ALCL in women with breast implants worldwide.

It has also convened an expert advisory panel, including cosmetic and plastic surgeons, breast-cancer surgeons, cancer epidemiologists, data analysts and public health practitioners, which met last month, to provide on-going advice.

"TGA medical advice remains that women with breast implants should discuss any concerns they do have with their doctor," the authority said in a statement."If patients are concerned they should see their doctor."

Breast implant-associated (BIA) ALCL is not breast cancer and it highly treatable, with most cases cured by removing the implant and capsule surrounding the implant, according to the Australian Society of Plastic Surgeons and the Australasian Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons.

"It's important to emphasise that the risk still remains very low, so unless there are associated symptoms such as a sudden swelling of the breast or a lump women do not need to have implants removed. However, we recommend women get their implants checked regularly," said ASPS president, Dr James Savundra.

"The vast majority of women with swelling of the breast do not have BIA-ALCL but it should be investigated via an ultrasound scan with the fluid around the implant analysed.

"Plastic surgeons are informing all patients undergoing breast implant surgery of the risk of BIA-ALCL and we recommend patients with breast implants be followed with annual clinical examinations," Dr Savundra said.

The two plastic surgeon societies are pushing for the creation of a mandated breast device registry that would capture all women with breast implants, allowing researchers to track problems associated with the implants and act as an early warning system when issues arise.