Before and after left nipple reconstruction using the free nipple graft (nipple sharing) technique in a 54-year-old breast cancer survivor. Her left nipple required removal due to cancer involvement. Following implant reconstruction, she was ready for her final stage of reconstruction, which included nipple reconstruction and medical tattoo to create a new areolar circle.
A piece of the right nipple – which was of a decent size – was transplanted to the left breast reconstruction as a free graft. It healed over several weeks like a skin graft. At the same procedure, medical tattoo was used on both the left breast to create a pigmented circle and also on the right areola for symmetry.
Long-term follow up photos are shown 4 years after surgery. The first set of before and after images shows the new nipple after reconstruction, and the second set shows the donor nipple before and after it was reduced in size to share some specialized nipple tissue with the reconstructed breast.
*All photos are actual patient photographs and are for illustrative purposes only. Individual results may vary.
