The word 'mastectomy' has traditionally evoked feelings of fear and dread in breast cancer victims. Even though doctors usually do everything they can to help women keep their breasts, unfortunately a mastectomy is still deemed necessary in about a third of all breast cancer cases. Some women even choose to have both breasts removed as a precautionary measure in instances where the chances of recurrence are considered high.
While no woman welcomes the need for such a radical type of surgery, the prospect of having a mastectomy performed does not bring quite the same level of consternation that it used to. This is because women who lose one or more of their breasts now have the option of having breast reconstruction surgery. Thanks to continued improvements in technique, this kind of surgical procedure can give women new breasts that feel fully natural and have an aesthetically pleasing appearance.
Types of Breast Reconstruction Surgery
There are two different types of breast reconstruction surgery: implant reconstruction and autologous reconstruction.
Implant reconstruction is a two-step process that actually begins during mastectomy surgery. After a breast has been removed, doctors will insert a balloon-like device under the tissue of the skin. This device will then be inflated slowly over the course of a few weeks, gradually and carefully expanding the tissue and muscle in the area of the breast. Once the area formerly occupied by the breast has been stretched out to an acceptable degree, the second stage of the process can commence. The patient will return to the hospital and a second surgery will be performed involving the removal of the inflatable device and the insertion of an implant filled with either saline or silicone gel.
The second kind of surgery is called autologous reconstruction. Instead of relying on an artificial implant, this type of reconstructive surgery rebuilds the breast using tissues taken from a woman's own body. In most cases, the tissue used to make the new breast will come from the lower abdomen. Occasionally, however, tissue from the buttocks or thighs will be used instead. Autologous surgery involves delicate, precise microsurgical procedures that must be performed perfectly if the surgery is to be a success. Surgeons must carefully disconnect tiny blood vessels that feed and nourish the tissues they are removing from the abdomen in order to make the new breast mound. When the naturally created replacement breast mound is implanted, these blood vessels must then be reattached so they can continue to keep the tissues alive. The microsurgical techniques involved in carrying out this procedure have advanced quite a bit, and it is now possible to remove tissue from the area of the stomach in a way that causes much less damage than had formerly been the case.
The general consensus seems to be that autologous reconstruction creates a new breast that appears somewhat more realistic than implant reconstruction surgery. However, improvements in methodology and technique for both options have helped improve the final results of breast reconstruction for all women who choose to have this surgery, regardless of which specific type of surgery they choose to have performed.
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