The perverted irony of Health Canada's Special Access Programme

The Oxford English Dictionary defines the word "irony" as "a state of affairs that appears perversely contrary to what one expects." A recent description of the use of Health Canada's Special Access Programme (SAP) to obtain breast implants1 is by all means "perversely contrary" to what we expect from the SAP - or is it? According to the news story,1 67% of SAP requests annually are for breast implant devices, and over the past 5 years, the SAP has approved over 21 ooo requests for silicone implants. The cosmetic surgeons interviewed explained that "small breasts" and "slight rippling of the skin through saline implants" are the medical conditions for which implants are sought through the SAP.