Washington ? Eleven years after most use of silicone-gel breast implants was banned amid fears they were dangerous, the Food and Drug Administration is considering letting them back on the U.S. market.

Revisiting the emotionally charged issue, the FDA next week will hear testimony essentially pitting woman against woman — some who say the implants broke apart to leave lasting scars, others who want implants they say feel more natural to reconstruct breasts savaged by cancer.

Inamed Corp. of Santa Barbara, Calif., reopened the controversy by asking the FDA for permission to sell its version of the implants in the United States, like it long has in Europe. A competitor also is expected to seek FDA approval soon.

Feminist groups and other critics say questions about long-term side effects when silicone gel leaks from the implants haven’t yet been settled, and that at the least, women face pain and repeated surgeries when the implants break. Newspaper and TV ads set to run nationwide depict implants as ticking bombs in women’s bodies and charge that the FDA is bowing to industry pressure to restart sales.

Proponents say implants have been thoroughly studied and exonerated as disease-causers, and that recipients are well aware that breast implants, just like pacemakers or metal hips, don’t last forever.