If you are interested in what fat transfer can do for you following breast chemotherapy, contact board-certified Newport Beach plastic surgeon Our Surgical Team MD FACS with any questions you have.
Fat transfer following breast radiation is a procedure routinely performed following breast cancer surgery. This is because breast cancer surgery requires the removal of breast pulp from the breast skin. Despite great skill employed by your breast cancer surgeon, the skin surface will inevitably display variable degrees of contour irregularities.
This is because, despite the use of a silicone implant to replace the breast volume removed, the breast implant can only mimic the replacement of a spherical void. When you consider that a mastectomy cannot be dictated by the limitations of a spherical excision, it becomes evident why we cannot expect the spherical implant to completely replace the lost tissues. This constraint is further compounded by patients requiring radiation.
Radiation of the breast can result in the contraction of the breast skin and underlying tissues. This contracture of tissues will further accentuate the contour irregularities created above. The effects of radiation have been made akin to a light beam that literally cooks the tissues resulting in fibrosis or stiffening of the breast skin.
This fibrosis makes cutting of skin significantly more technical as the skin loses its ability to heal. For example, the traditional breast lift performed to lift the breast must be avoided. However, fat transfer following breast radiation is a safe procedure as it avoids any large incision lines.
Moreover, the fat transferred contains stem cells that will act to rejuvenate the area, treat the fibrosis, and smoothen the skin. Stem cells maintain the ability to secrete rejuvenating products that will actually heal neighboring cells that have been compromised by the radiation beam. You can see this effect first hand in this presented 54-year-old Newport Beach patient after a fat transfer procedure.
Breast Radiation on a 54-year-old female from Newport beach demonstrates dramatic improvement through her fat transfer following breast radiation. She now enjoys a rounder, more symmetrical breast contour. You can also notice a visible improvement in her skin texture as well.
