Breast Reconstruction

The pros and cons of breast reconstruction

If you are diagnosed with breast cancer and advised to have all or part of your breast removed, it can be difficult to think clearly about breast reconstruction; you will be preoccupied with the operation itself. However, most breast reconstruction procedures take place at the same time as a mastectomy or lumpectomy, so you do need to give it some thought before you have surgery.

While breast reconstruction techniques are now very advanced, a reconstructed breast will never look and feel exactly like your natural breast, and there are pros and cons of breast reconstruction you should be aware of before you make a final decision.

Breast reconstruction explained

Breast reconstruction is the process of replacing the breast that is removed in a mastectomy operation, or improving the shape of the breast that has been operated on after a lumpectomy. Breast reconstruction aims to match the new or remodeled breast to the remaining natural breast as closely as possible.

There are two methods of breast reconstruction. A breast can be created using an artificial implant placed under the skin and muscle that covers the chest, or a breast can be made using fat, skin or muscle from another part of your body.

The sort of breast reconstruction you will have may depend on various factors including the amount of breast tissue that has been removed, whether you have had radiotherapy to the breast area, how healthy the remaining breast tissue is, and your overall health, age and body shape. Discuss the type of surgery that would best suit you with your surgeon.

Not all women choose to have a nipple reconstruction as part of their breast reconstruction, but this is possible in many instances. Although it is possible to have a nipple reconstruction performed at the same time as a breast reconstruction, most women prefer to wait until the breast has settles into its final shape.

Advantages of breast reconstruction

Having breast reconstruction may help you to feel more ‘normal’ after a mastectomy. It can help rebuild confidence, and make you feel more attractive.

Having breast reconstruction can help your sex life as many women who have had one or both breasts removed can feel very self conscious or tense without their clothes.

If you have breast reconstruction you won’t need to wear a prosthesis, or external artificial breast.

If you have breast reconstruction you should look the same as before your operation when you are wearing clothes, even tight fitting or sleeveless outfits. You may be more comfortable about wearing a swimsuit or bikini, and you will have a natural looking cleavage.

Having a breast reconstruction will not interfere with your breast cancer treatment, and will not make recurrence of breast cancer any more likely. You can still have radiotherapy and future scans or mammograms will be just as effective with a reconstructed breast.

Limitations of breast reconstruction

A reconstructed breast will never feel exactly the same as your natural breast and it will not have the same sensitivity.

You would not be able to breastfeed after a breast reconstruction, although if you still have one natural breast you should be able to feed form that.

It can be difficult to get an exact match with your remaining natural breast without some surgery on the natural breast to change its size or shape.

It can take several operations to get a breast shape that you are happy with. If you want a nipple reconstruction, this is usually done during a separate operation.

There will be some scarring after a breast reconstruction operation, although this will be minimal.

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