Before and after bilateral nipple-sparing mastectomy and immediate breast implant reconstruction in a 39 year old woman. She had cancer on one side but chose to have a prophylactic (preventative) mastectomy on the other side given her young age.
Smooth, round, permanent and postoperatively adjustable implants were placed on top of the muscle. This is also known as pre-pectoral reconstruction. They stayed in place together with the implant ports during her chemotherapy. She did not require radiation therapy.
Learn more about this type of breast implant reconstruction in the breast reconstruction educational section and blog posts about permanent, postoperatively adjustable implants that are used instead of tissue expanders and that are always positioned on top of the muscle. The breast reconstruction is essentially complete by 2-3 weeks after surgery. The pain of tissue expansion is avoided, and the implants can be kept with removal of the implant ports under local anesthesia if desired, with only one trip to the operating room required!
This patient’s saline implants could have stayed in place, but she chose to have her implants switched to silicone at 6 months after her mastectomies in order for the very best results. Silicone gel implants feel and look more natural than saline, and are the most common final implant used in the final stage of breast reconstruction.
Follow up images are shown at one month after implant exchange, and 7 months after her mastectomy. She feels complete and often forgets she has ever had breast cancer. She is focused on her family, her career and her health, as she should be!
*All photos are actual patient photographs and are for illustrative purposes only. Individual results may vary.
