Implant breast reconstruction after salvage mastectomy in previously irradiated patients.
The most common surgical approach in case of local tumor recurrence after quadrantectomy and radiotherapy is salvage mastectomy. Breast reconstruction is the subsequent phase of the treatment and the plastic surgeon has to operate on previously irradiated and manipulated tissues. The medical literature highlights that breast reconstruction with tissue expanders is not a pursuable option, considering previous radiotherapy a contraindication. The purpose of this retrospective study is to evaluate the influence of previous radiotherapy on 2-stage breast reconstruction (tissue expander/implant). Only patients with analogous timing of radiation therapy and the same demolitive and reconstructive procedures were recruited. The results of this study prove that, after salvage mastectomy in previously irradiated patients, implant reconstruction is still possible. Further comparative studies are, of course, advisable to draw any conclusion on the possibility to perform implant reconstruction in previously irradiated patients.
Persichetti
Paolo
P
Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Campus Bio-Medico University of Rome, Rome, Italy. p.persichetti@unicampus.it
Cagli
Barbara
B
Simone
Pierfranco
P
Cogliandro
Annalisa
A
Fortunato
Lucio
L
Altomare
Vittorio
V
Trodella
Lucio
L