Giving Voice to Canadians Concerned About Breast Cancer
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Lumpectomy (Breast Conserving Surgery)
If you choose to have a lumpectomy, there are several reconstruction options available to you; you may also decide not to have any reconstruction done. There is no standard reconstruction approach after a lumpectomy, the options depend on your previous treatments and what you hope to achieve with your reconstruction. Your plastic surgeon can provide details about options that may be appropriate for you. The following three procedures outlined below are the most common after a lumpectomy.
Options After a Lumpectomy
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Lipofilling or Fat Grafting
Uses fat tissue from other parts of the body to fill in small dents left by a lumpectomy
- Usually fat from the abdomen or buttocks
- Beneficial because your own tissue is used so you are less likely to have a reaction or reject the tissue
- Reconstructed breast feels similar to an unreconstructed breast
- Thin women may need multiple donor sites for fat grafting, which is to consider
- May not be covered by public health care system, which may result in out of pocket expenses
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Tissue Flap
Tissue flap is used from other parts of the body
- Usually from your abdomen, buttocks, back or thigh
- Used to fill in larger dent left from a lumpectomy
- Visit the autologous reconstruction section of this tool to find out more about the various tissue flaps that are used for breast reconstruction.
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Partial Prosthesis
Artificial partial breast form
- Can help balance any irregularities in the area that was removed by lumpectomy
- Usually sits right against the skin
- Can be used with a regular bra
“I had a hard time feeling comfortable with something that wasn’t my own flesh filling up a gap that had been left by my lumpectomy. No matter how many bras I tried it in I just couldn’t get used to the weight and feel. I think now that part of that is that it was just too big. I now actually have a much smaller one and it is much better and feels more like me but I still don’t wear it all the time, sports bras fit me fine without it and are a big part of my daily wear.”
~Deborah~
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