Breast Reduction After Lumpectomy And Radiation

Breast reduction after lumpectomy and radiation is an effective way to reduce the size of your breast. It has two main goals: 1. To produce a more feminine and proportionate breast shape 2. To reduce the risk of cancer recurrence. You may wish to consider lumpectomy for the treatment of breast cancer if you have a lump or mass in part of your breast, or if you have a small area of dense tissue in one breast that makes mammograms difficult to read.

In this guide, we review the aspects of Breast Reduction After Lumpectomy And Radiation, breast symmetry surgery after lumpectomy, breast reduction and lift after cancer, and breast reconstruction after lumpectomy radiation.

Breast Reduction After Lumpectomy And Radiation

If you’ve been diagnosed with breast cancer, there’s a good chance you had a lumpectomy to remove the tumor. After this surgery, many women opt for radiation therapy to make sure the cancer doesn’t come back. While radiation may not be as scary as it sounds, there are some negative side effects that many women experience. One of these side effects is an altered breast size and shape, which can be hard to deal with after going through such an overwhelming experience. Fortunately, there are ways to restore your body back to its original state—such as getting a breast reduction after lumpectomy and radiation therapy!

Finding the right surgeon can help make the decision easier.

Finding the right surgeon can help make the decision easier. If you’re considering breast reduction surgery, it’s important to find a board certified plastic surgeon who specializes in breast reduction and has experience with this type of surgery after lumpectomy and radiation. The American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) offers extensive information on plastic surgeons by state at www.plasticsurgery.org/findingsurgeon/.

If you know someone who has had breast reduction surgery, ask them if they are happy with their results and how they feel about their new body. It may also be helpful to talk with a patient coordinator at your chosen surgeon’s office for more information about his/her experience with patients like yourself.

A good place to begin your search for a qualified plastic surgeon is on realself.com and drspock.com where people share their experiences with procedures such as tummy tucks, facelifts, liposuction and more!

For many women, breast reduction after a lumpectomy and radiation therapy is a worthy goal.

For many women, breast reduction after a lumpectomy and radiation therapy is a worthy goal. The treatment can cause several side effects, including pain and discomfort in the breasts, as well as changes in their appearance. Breast reduction surgery can help you feel more comfortable with the way your breasts look and feel, which might make it easier for you to wear clothes or exercise without pain.

There are several different methods for realigning the nipples.

One of the benefits of a lumpectomy and radiation is that it can be performed on any part of the breast, so as long as there’s enough tissue left to reshape and reposition your nipple, you don’t need to worry about losing it entirely. The most common method for realigning the nipples is “the crease technique,” where the surgeon moves them to their pre-surgery position using minimal incisions in order to avoid scarring. In some cases, your plastic surgeon might use a combination of methods depending on how far away from your original nipple location they want to bring them back.

Other options include moving them up closer toward your armpits or down closer toward your hips (toward where they were before cancer treatment started). This requires more extensive surgery but has less chance of damaging nerves or causing discomfort during breastfeeding later on.*

It’s important not only for aesthetic reasons but also because having healthy breasts makes it easier for doctors and nurses at future appointments–and insurance claims–to identify which side was treated first if there are any discrepancies between sides later on down the road.*

A breast reduction may be appropriate for a variety of reasons.

• You have breast tissue that is too large for your body.
• Your breasts sag and pull your shoulders forward, which can create back pain.
• Your breasts are heavy, causing you to experience discomfort when exercising or performing normal daily tasks.
• Your breasts are wide-set (meaning they are too far apart), causing you to experience discomfort when wearing clothes or engaging in sports activities that require jumping or running.

After a mastectomy, reconstructive surgery may be needed.

After a mastectomy, reconstructive surgery may be needed. This can occur in two ways:

• At the same time as the mastectomy. Breast reconstruction is often performed at the same time as a lumpectomy or breast-sparing mastectomy. If you are having this procedure, it will take place during your lumpectomy or mastectomy surgery. The doctor will remove tissue around your tumor and then use that tissue to build new breasts on either side of your chest wall. This method requires no further surgeries and does not involve implants; however, it does have several drawbacks compared with implant-based breast reconstruction methods (see below). It’s important to note that this type of reconstruction won’t be available if you’ve had radiation therapy after chemotherapy in addition to your initial diagnosis because radiation therapy can cause severe damage to any implanted tissue over time—and it’s impossible to tell how long those effects might last when you undergo chemotherapy first before deciding whether or not you want them later down the line! In these cases, doctors recommend waiting until after chemo treatment has concluded before exploring options like this one because there’s no way around receiving radiation therapy treatments if they’re necessary–we wish we could give better news about avoiding such treatment altogether but unfortunately that isn’t possible here 🙁 It also means waiting till after any other medical interventions (such as hormone therapies) have finished being administered too so make sure everything else has been taken care of before proceeding with any further treatment plans whatsoever.”

If you decide to have a breast reduction, the right surgeon can make it an easy decision.

If you decide to have a breast reduction, the right surgeon can make it an easy decision. Choosing a board-certified plastic surgeon is an important first step in making sure your surgery goes well. That’s because they are required to go through more training than non-board certified surgeons, and they have proven their commitment to continuing education throughout their careers in order to maintain certification.

Plastic surgeons who are affiliated with hospitals are also likely more experienced and skilled than those who don’t work at hospitals because they have access to better equipment and resources when performing surgeries there—and this includes breast reductions after lumpectomy or radiation treatment!

Finally, take some time online or talk with friends about what kind of doctor would be best suited for your needs before making any decisions on who should perform your surgery—a good recommendation from someone else will help ease anxiety about choosing correctly since other people will already know how satisfied they were with previous procedures done by that person!

breast symmetry surgery after lumpectom

It is sometimes possible to breastfeed after undergoing breast lift surgery, but it will be a much different experience to breastfeeding without having a breast lift. Depending on the procedure, the surgery will affect the breasts and the lactation process in different ways. Breast lifts can affect the lactation system and make it difficult or impossible to breastfeed afterwards. If you are interested in getting a breast lift but still want to be able to breastfeed in the future, talk to your surgeon to see if there’s a way to alter the surgery to preserve your ability to breastfeed.

What is a Breast Lift?

A breast lift is a surgery that involves lifting the breasts without taking out any tissue. This results in firmer, higher, and rounder breasts. Sometimes an implant is also put into place; this is known as breast augmentation. There are two different techniques for incisions. One is periareolar, which goes around the nipple. The other is an inverted T or vertical incision. The method used depends on where the nipple is currently located and what the desired end result is.

Both methods will end up repositioning the nipple, but the catch is to not separate the nipple from the glandular tissue, keeping the nerves and the lactation system intact. This means breastfeeding after a breast lift is still possible. During other types of breast surgery, such as breast reduction, the tissue is removed which is more likely to lead to losing lactation ability, meaning it is less likely to be able to breastfeed after a breast reduction.

Factors to Consider When Breastfeeding After a Breast Lift

Loss of Function

While it is entirely possible to breastfeed after a breast lift, it will likely not be the same as breastfeeding before surgery. The surgery may cause a loss of function due to the incision or potentially severed nerves or ducts. There is no way to know for sure until you try breastfeeding, but one indicator that you will be able to breastfeed is normal sensation in your nipples after the surgery.

Nipple Sensation

Periareolar widening, pleating, and changes in nipple sensation are some of the downsides to a breast lift. It can take up to a year to regain normal nipple sensation after a breast lift, so some doctors will recommend you wait to get pregnant to allow your mammary glands to fully heal. If you have previously breastfed prior to your surgery, it is more likely you’ll be able to again after the surgery, though you should expect some reduced milk production. It is always important to talk to your doctor about breastfeeding after surgery so that they can determine the best techniques to use to preserve your lactation system.

Augmentation

Breastfeeding can be made more difficult by the addition of breast augmentation, or implants, as well as a breast lift. There is a higher possibility for damage when both surgeries are performed. Your ability to breastfeed will also depend on the amount of time that has passed since your surgery. Fortunately, there are many ways to supplement your breast milk with formula and other methods of feeding your child should you not be able to produce enough milk after your surgery.

Change of Appearance

Both pregnancy and breastfeeding change the shape and appearance of your breasts. They grow bigger during pregnancy and shrink after the lactation process is complete, which often leaves loose skin. Many women seek breast lifts after having a child, but if you plan on getting pregnant again you might think about waiting until you are done having children because the breasts change shape even more dramatically in subsequent pregnancies.

Get More Information

There are many resources and books available on this topic as well, for new and returning mothers. However, it is always a good idea to talk to a breastfeeding specialist, even if you have breastfed in the past. A specialist is the best person to give advice on how to increase milk production and supplement your own milk with other formulas and methods to ensure your child gets all the nutrients they need to be healthy. You should also talk to your surgeon about breastfeeding after a breast lift. They will be able to walk you through the procedure and adapt it to fit your individual needs.

breast reduction and lift after cancer

Oncoplastic breast surgery combines the techniques of traditional breast cancer surgery with the cosmetic advantages of plastic surgery. The goal is to remove cancer while minimizing the unwanted effects of surgery, helping patients heal both physically and emotionally.

How Oncoplastic Surgery Works

Oncoplastic surgery is most commonly performed in association with a lumpectomy. To begin, the surgeon will remove the tumor, a small amount of surrounding tissue, and possibly some of the nearby lymph nodes. Then the plastic surgeon will perform a bilateral breast reduction or lift to make the two breasts symmetrical.

The breast cancer surgery operation and plastic surgery operation are performed one after the other. Doing this has several benefits:

Oncoplastic Techniques

There are many different oncoplastic techniques depending on the cancer’s characteristics, the patient’s health and body, and their desired outcome. Some of the most common include:

Local Advancement Flap

With a traditional lumpectomy, a tumor and a small portion of the surrounding tissue is removed. However, depending on the size and location of the tumor, this can deform the breast.

Instead, a local advancement flap allows surgeons to take the tissue that remains after a tumor has been removed and use it to reconstruct the original appearance of the breast. This leaves no additional indentations or defects.

Bilateral Breast Reduction

When a lumpectomy is performed on only one breast, it can reduce its size and alter its shape. A bilateral breast reduction solves this problem by altering the size and shape of the other breast as well.

This technique has several benefits. By operating on the other breast, a larger amount of tissue is removed. This can be helpful if the tumor is large and additional tissue is required. Modifying the other breast will also help make both breasts more symmetrical.

Bilateral Breast Lift (Mastopexy)

A bilateral breast lift, or mastopexy, is a more minimal form of bilateral breast reduction. This is a good option for women who don’t want to significantly reduce the original shape of their breasts.

Rather than removing a large amount of tissue from both breasts, the only tissue that’s removed is from the original excision (as well as a comparable amount on the other breast). This can be accompanied by additional aesthetic procedures, such as a nipple relocation, to help the breasts become more symmetrical.

Skin-Sparing Mastectomy

For patients with advanced stage breast cancer, a mastectomy may be necessary. If this is the case, a skin-sparing mastectomy can help the patient conserve the look of the breast.

In this procedure, the skin of the breast, including the nipple and areola, are removed. Then the breast tissue is taken out through the same incision. Afterward, the surgeon will reconstruct the breast using the removed skin, nipple, and areola. Doing so allows them to preserve the original shape and appearance of the breast.

Who Is Eligible for Oncoplastic Surgery?

The variety of oncoplastic techniques mean that they can be used with a range of breast types. However, patients interested in oncoplastic surgery to reduce the size of their breasts will likely require breasts large enough to accommodate these techniques. Women with small breasts or those who have had multiple lumpectomies may not be eligible for oncoplastic surgery.

breast reconstruction after lumpectomy radiation

During a lumpectomy, a portion of the breast tissue is removed to treat a cancer or mass. The purpose of lumpectomy or breast conservation therapy is to treat the cancer or mass without having to remove the entire breast, like in a mastectomy. 

The amount of breast tissue removed during a lumpectomy can vary widely. Therefore, the results after lumpectomy are often unpredictable. This can leave a woman with a contour abnormality, deformity or asymmetry. This is especially true when radiation is part of the treatment plan.

Lumpectomy reconstruction or partial breast reconstruction, also known as oncoplastic reconstruction, is an option for patients who have had a lumpectomy and wish to recreate symmetry between the remaining breast and the other side. It can be performed at the time of the lumpectomy or many years later if a deformity exists.

There are numerous options for partial breast reconstruction, depending on the unique aspects of your case, the size and shape of the breasts and the amount of tissue removed. These options include rearranging the remaining breast tissue at the time of the surgery, transferring tissue from the back using the TAP flap or latissimus flap procedures, placing a breast implant, or performing fat grafting by harvesting your own fat with liposuction from other parts of the body.   

This type of reconstruction often involves a simultaneous breast lift or breast reduction on the affected breast as well as the opposite breast creating greater symmetry and improving overall cosmetic appearance.  

What to expect

Although not always necessary, oncoplastic or partial breast reconstruction at the time of lumpectomy can be considered before surgery. Some patients are better off waiting until after their cancer treatment is complete while others will benefit from immediate reconstruction done in conjunction with a plastic surgeon. At Northwell, our interdisciplinary approach means that we’re able to offer this combined procedure to our patients.

To prepare for the surgery, you will first meet with a breast surgeon and then consult with your plastic surgeon so that they can coordinate your care together. The timing of this type of reconstruction is highly variable and needs to be determined based on your diagnosis, the stage of your cancer, the size and location of the mass or lump and the size and shape of the breasts, as well as any additional therapy that will be used, such as postoperative radiation. Together, you and your surgical team can make the best decision.

Complications

There are minimal additional risks involved in partial or oncoplastic breast reconstruction after lumpectomy.  Most of the risks are the same when undergoing lumpectomy alone without reconstruction. Some side effects may include decreased sensation in the nipples or residual asymmetry, especially when radiation is involved in the treatment plan for your cancer.

Recovery

Lumpectomy reconstruction is usually an ambulatory procedure in an outpatient facility, which means you can go home the same day as your surgery. There may be some soreness and discomfort for a few days following the procedure, but patients typically return to work after a week.