Breast Reconstruction

Face and body images other than staff and patients of Dr. Rodriguez are stock models.
Las imágenes de la cara y el cuerpo que no sean del personal y los pacientes de la Dra, Rodríguez son modelos estándar

“Today, there are so many great options for patients when it comes to breast reconstruction. As breast cancer treatment has advanced, so has breast reconstruction surgery. It is now more about combining reconstruction procedures with aesthetic techniques to give the best results possible.” - Dr. Rodriguez

Breast cancer treatment frequently necessitates removal of breast tissue with surgery. Some patients have a portion of one breast removed with a partial mastectomy or “lumpectomy.” Other patients have the entire breast removed with a mastectomy. Sometimes, breast skin is removed during the mastectomy and this may include the nipple and areola. While some women have one breast removed with surgery, others may have both removed with a bilateral or “double” mastectomy.

There are so many different breast cancer treatment options and just as many (if not more!) different options for breast reconstruction. The goal is to maintain or restore a woman’s sense of femininity and wholeness by reconstructing the breast.

There are many tools available for breast reconstruction surgery:

Implant-based:

This type of reconstruction ultimately relies on a breast implant to recreate the shape of the breast. In the majority of cases, placing a breast implant immediately at the time of the mastectomy will place the tissues under too much tension and will risk jeopardizing blood supply to the skin. For this reason, a tissue expander is usually placed before a breast implant. A tissue expander is like a deflated breast implant that gets filled up with saline over time, over the course of weeks-months after the mastectomy surgery. This allows the breast skin to recover and establish better blood supply before gradually stretching it out by filling up the tissue expander. In a separate second surgery, the tissue expander is removed and a breast implant placed.

Autologous

Autologous reconstruction uses your own natural tissue from a different part of the body to recreate the shape of the breast. This is like a transplant of tissue from your own body, to your own body. When the tissue is transferred, it is called a flap. The location where the tissue is taken from is called the donor site. Commonly used flaps include:

Oncoplastic

Oncoplastic surgery aims to preserve the natural breast tissue whenever possible, while still fully treating the breast cancer. Usually, this is achieved by removing the area of the breast with cancer with a partial mastectomy or “lumpectomy.” Then, the breast tissue and skin are re-arranged so that the loss of tissue is not noticeable. This is oftentimes achieved by doing a modified breast lift (mastopexy) or breast reduction surgery. This preserves a nice shape to the breast while lifting it up on the chest and giving it a more youthful appearance. A similar procedure can be performed on the other breast to improve symmetry.

Most women who need or have had a mastectomy, either partial or total, are candidates for breast reconstruction. Dr. Rodriguez will take significant time to discuss all the various options available to you. She will also talk at length with your breast cancer surgeon to determine the safest path forward.

It is critical to stop any nicotine use before and after breast reconstruction surgery.

Since there are so many different options for breast reconstruction surgery, the recovery period and activity restrictions can be quite variable depending on which surgery you have. For implant-based and oncoplastic reconstruction, most patients stay overnight in the hospital one night and then go home the next day. For autologous reconstruction, most patients stay in the hospital for a few days before going home.