When My cousin was 30 years old which was 5 years ago She got diagnosed with breast cancer. She did mastectomy with reconstruction on one breast followed by radiation which ruined everything. She revised the reconstruct again and did lifts plus putting implant on her other breast to get both asymmetric . still her reconstruct Breast is smaller . Can she injects fat on it to make them even
It is not clear that only fat grafting will be sufficient but it will certainly reverse some of the radiation changes. I have seen cases where just a small amount of fat grafting reversed the skin color changes due to radiation and also made the skin more supple. In the near future nearly every breast reconstruction patient will have fat grafting to the chest at some point in their lives. The key to a good result is surgical technique with the injection of very small droplets of fat placed at multiple levels under the skin at 2 or more operations.
She would have to be seen in person to determine if she is a candidate for fat injection to her breasts. Best of luck
I am sorry to hear about your cousin's breast cancer. Remember that while radiation does damage the tissue, it also cures cancer and prevents it from coming back. Fat grafting will help improve the skin and surrounding tissue on the radiated side. It may take several smaller operations, rather than one big one to achieve her best result. The good news is, it can always be improved and is worth addressing. Best wishes to you
Hi Tatiana,
Fat grafting to the breast is certainly a possibility to help her reach her goals. While there are some lingering concerns about injecting fat into a breast where cancer once was, in practice I have not seen and adverse complications. In fact, fat grafting has the potential to improve the seemingly irreversible changes associated with radiation. I would be happy to see your cousin for a second opinion. I hope this helps.
Hello and thank you for your excellent question. It is best to answer your question during a face-to-face evaluation, when you can discuss your goals and expectations for the procedure, and you can have a physical examination to evaluate for that procedure. I recommend that you find a board-certified, or board-eligible plastic surgeon with whom you are comfortable. Be sure to have all of your questions answered during a face-to-face meeting with your surgeon, and review before and after pictures of similar patients whom have had this procedure. If you have any questions, call our office for assistance. Good luck!
Thank you for sharing your excellent question and I am sorry to hear of your cousin's difficulties after breast reconstruction. Because of the number of different treatment options available to her, it is difficult without an in-person examination to recommend any one procedure such as fat grafting. I would recommend she see a series of ASPS board certified plastic surgeons in her area to discuss her current implant and radiation issues and the best operation to help reverse them. Hope this helps.
Fat grafting is one of the option for breast reconstruction. She should have a complete consultation with an experienced board certified plastic surgeon to go over all of her options. Radiation with mastectomy is a complex situation that needs to be handled by an experienced breast reconstruction surgeon who will provide ALL of the options.