When to do plastic surgery after breast cancer surgery?

Bad cosmesis or deformities produced by cancer or its treatment may affect a patient’s sense of body image and confidence.

In the case of cancer of the breast, surgery may include the removal of the whole breast or simply the portion of the breast that is afflicted by the disease. This kind of mutilating surgery can leave a bad scar on a lady’s self-esteem.

Oncoplasty is an integration of plastic surgery principles for immediate breast reshaping following wide excision cancer

Breast cancer surgery may involve the removal of a part of the breast along with the tumour or the removal of the entire breast (mastectomy).

A variety of methods exist for women who want to reconstruct their breasts. Implants ( silicone) may be used to reconstruct breasts. Autologous tissue (tissue from elsewhere in the body) reconstruction is another option. Breast reconstruction with both implants and autologous tissue is possible.

Immediate breast reconstruction may be done at the time of mastectomy in the same surgical sitting. Sometimes, the patient may opt for a delayed reconstruction.

If the nipple and areola were lost after the mastectomy, they might be re-created on the rebuilt breast as a last step in the breast reconstruction process.

Breast reconstruction procedures may also be performed on the other (contralateral) breast to ensure symmetry between the breasts.

Also Read : What is Breast Reconstruction?

You and your doctor should go through your options after considering your preferences, current health, and history of surgical procedures.

• Implants :

A silicone-gel implant is inserted under the skin after a tissue expander is placed to extend the skin. Once a week, for a few sessions, saline is added to the tissue expander until it reaches the desired volume. Though discomfort is expected, the end outcome is often satisfying for female patients.

When implants break, they may cause severe discomfort and even infection. They may need to be surgically removed or replaced.

• DIEP flap :

(Deep inferior epigastric artery perforator Flap)

Reconstructing the breast using a DIEP flap involves using skin and fatty tissue from the woman’s belly and anastomose the belly vessels (DIEP) to the vessels on the chest wall.

This is called a free-flap method, as it involves detaching the tissue and reattaching it to a blood supply at the transplant site. The result is a reconstruction that appears more like the patient’s original breasts. 

• Type I or Type II oncoplasty : 

After breast conservation surgery, partial breast reconstruction can be done by oncoplasty.

Depending on the size and site of defect, type I oncoplasty which involves mobilizing local breast tissue or a type 2 oncoplasty which involves use of local flaps like the LICAP, AICAP etc may be done.

• Fat Grafting :

Excess breast tissue and fat may be surgically removed or redistributed during this operation, which is performed following a mastectomy.

This treatment, which fixes contour irregularities, may be performed alongside a mastectomy or later. Fat grafting may be performed if necessary to get the desired aesthetic result.

Also Know more about, what is the cost of breast cancer treatment in India.

Each woman reacts differently to the prospect of a life without a breast or a breast component.

It’s up to each individual to decide, and the process may be complex. Reconstruction is not essential. You can do nothing to alter your appearance or use external breast forms or pads.

Now more than ever before, the outcomes of plastic surgery are impressive. Breast implants or the patient’s tissue might be used during breast reconstruction.

Even if the process alters your physical look, it helps your mental health. You and your loved ones may have an increased feeling of well-being.

The timeline will be determined by your preferences, current health, and progress with cancer treatment. It may be performed at the same time as a mastectomy or at a later time, even years later.

Your surgeon will be able to advise you on the optimal time.

Conclusion

Your duration of stay in the hospital will be determined by the sort of surgery you have and how well you recover from it.

Flap surgeries may necessitate a stay of five to six days. Breast reconstruction surgery is an option which should be discussed by all ladies undergoing breast cancer treatment.