Before and after DIEP flap and TUG flap breast reconstruction in a 67 year old woman. She had previously undergone a right mastectomy followed by chemotherapy and radiation. She wanted to use her own tissue for reconstruction of her right breast and she chose the DIEP flap.
A DIEP flap microsurgically transplanted skin and fat from her lower abdomen to her chest to reconstruct her right breast. Her left breast was lifted at the same procedure. She recovered well and was happy with her results, returning to work at 6 weeks and resuming her active lifestyle.
Unfortunately, 4 years later she was diagnosed with a left breast cancer requiring a mastectomy. She was a candidate for an implant but she had such a great experience with her first microsurgical reconstruction that she chose another flap. Since her tummy tissue had already been used, we next looked to her inner thighs.
Her right inner thigh was transplanted to her chest to reconstruct her left breast as a TUG flap. She recovered well from this procedure, and she considered herself a “microsurgical expert” at this point!
Follow up photos are shown at 2 years after her TUG flap and 7 years after her DIEP flap after surgery. If she wishes, she could have free fat grafting in the future to help even out her inner thighs and to touch up her right areola tattoo, which has faded. She is “done with surgery”, which is understandable! She is considering 3D tattooing to improve her results without returning to the operating room.
*All photos are actual patient photographs and are for illustrative purposes only. Individual results may vary.
