Dr. Mendoza in the Media

For Immediate Release

Options In Breast Reconstruction

Breast Cancer is the leading cancer in women. Virtually any woman who must lose her breast to cancer can have it rebuilt through reconstructive surgery.

There are several options available for Breast Reconstruction. These include tissue expander/implant reconstruction, TRAM flap reconstruction and Latissimus Dorsi flap reconstruction, with or without and implant. All these options have their own risks and benefits. The most common technique combines skin expansion and subsequent insertion of an implant.

Tissue Expander:
A balloon expander will be inserted beneath your skin and chest muscle. Through a tiny valve mechanism buried beneath the skin, saline or a salt-water solution is periodically injected to gradually fill the expander over several weeks or months. After the skin over the breast area has stretched enough, the expander may be removed in a second operation and a more permanent implant will be inserted. Some expanders are designed to be left in place as the final implant. These implants require a second smaller operation to remove the valve. The nipple and the dark skin surrounding it, called the areola, are reconstructed in a subsequent procedure.

Flap Reconstruction:
An alternative approach to implant reconstruction involves creation of a skin flap using tissue taken from other parts of the body, such as the back, abdomen, or buttocks.

In one type of flap surgery, the tissue remains attached to its original site, retaining its blood supply. The flap, consisting of the skin, fat, and muscle with its blood supply, are tunneled beneath the skin to the chest, creating a pocket for an implant (Latissimus Dorsi flap with implant), or, in some cases, creating the breast mound itself, without need for an implant (TRAM flap or Latissimus Dorsi flap).

Free TRAM:
Here, the abdominal tissue is separated completely from the body and then the blood vessels are connected to new blood vessels in that region. This procedure requires the skills of a plastic surgeon that is experienced in microvascular surgery as well.

Regardless of the type of flap reconstruction chosen, this surgery is generally more complex than tissue expander reconstruction and recovery will take longer. On the other hand, when breast reconstruction is performed with a patient's own tissue only, the results are typically more natural and the possible complications of implants are eliminated.

Dr. Mendoza is a Board Certified Plastic Surgeon with offices in Naperville, Chicago (Michigan Avenue) and Oak Lawn. Specializing in cosmetic surgery of the face and of the body, he also offers a wide range of cosmetic surgery options. He can be reached at Chicagoland Plastic Surgery at 630.305.0331 or www.plastic-handsurgery.com

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