Immediate breast reconstruction post-mastectomy in a patient with prior breast augmentation mastopexy and lumpectomy with radiation: a case report

Abstract

Mastectomy for invasive ductal carcinoma can be followed by either immediate or delayed breast reconstruction. Immediate implant reconstruction is more cost-effective, practical, and can provide substantial psychosocial benefits for the patient. However, patients with prior breast surgeries and radiation exposure carry an increased risk of postoperative complications such as mastectomy flap necrosis and therefore are often not offered the procedure. We present a patient who received mastopexy augmentation followed by lumpectomy with radiation, who then many years later underwent a successful skin-sparing mastectomy with immediate reconstruction. To our knowledge, this is the first study to demonstrate the feasibility of immediate implant-based breast reconstruction following skin-sparing mastectomy in a patient with several prior breast surgeries and radiation exposure to the same breast.