Breast reconstruction after mastectomy.

Recent developments in prosthetics and surgical techniques have made breast reconstruction a well-established procedure, producing satisfactory results even in situations with heavy scarring and after excision of the pectoral muscle. Close cooperation between general surgeon, oncologist and plastic surgeon is needed for counseling of patients toward reconstruction. Those patients with relatively early disease and a strong desire for reconstruction were selected. Of the 15 patients who underwent breast reconstruction in our unit, 10 had only a silicone prosthesis implanted, but 5 also needed a myocutaneous flap from the latissimus dorsi to compensate for deficient soft tissues. Although some postoperative complications occurred, they were either self-limited or could easily be corrected at a later stage. Two-thirds of the patients were very pleased with the results and none regarded the reconstruction as a failure.