Options for immediate breast reconstruction following skin-sparing mastectomy

Background  Skin-sparing mastectomy (SSM) is a type of breast cancer surgery presupposed as breast reconstruction surgery. Cosmetically, it is an extremely effective breast cancer operation because the greater part of the breast’s native skin and infra-mammary fold are conserved. All cases of SSM and immediate breast reconstruction performed by the senior author during the last five years were reviewed. as]Methods: There are three implant options for breast reconstruction, namely, deep inferior epigastric perforator (DIEP) flap, latissimus dorsi myocutaneous (LDM) flap, and breast implant, and one of these was used for reconstruction after comprehensive evaluation. Results  From 2001 to 2005, immediate reconstructions following SSM were performed on 124 cases (128 breasts) by the same surgeon. Partial necrosis of the breast skin occurred in 4 cases of SSM. The mean follow-up was 33.6 months. During the follow-up, there was local recurrence following surgery in 3 cases. The overall aesthetic results of immediate breast reconstruction after SSM are better than those after non-SSM. Conclusion  SSM preserves the native breast skin and infra-mammary fold, and is an extremely useful breast cancer surgery for breast reconstruction. SSM is an excellent breast cancer surgical technique. We think this procedure should be considered in more facilities conducting breast reconstruction in Japan.