Breast cancer in women with breast implants, the study: “Yes to immediate reconstruction”

Patients undergoing breast augmentation surgery who face a diagnosis of breast cancer”they can undergo immediate reconstruction with a definitive prosthesis preferably positioned in front of the pectoral muscle. If they are very thin, the prosthesis will be positioned behind the pectoralis major muscle“. This is what emerges from a study conducted in Italy on 38 patients between January 2015 and July 2023, published in the journal 'Aesthetic Surgery Journal' and indexed on PubMed. Thanks to this study it is possible to dispel the 'fake news' according to which patients with breast prostheses inserted for aesthetic purposes prior to the diagnosis of cancer, it is not possible to carry out immediate reconstruction with the definitive prosthesis at the same time as the demolition phase of the mastectomy.

“Breast augmentation patients facing a diagnosis of breast cancer pose unique challenges in terms of treatment and reconstruction. The study demonstrated that immediate reconstruction with the definitive prosthesis is possible with a satisfactory aesthetic result. In particular, if the prosthesis is positioned in front of the muscle, the result is natural, recovery is simpler and quicker, with an excellent quality of life for the patient”, underlines Marzia Salgarello, reconstructive plastic surgeon at the Fondazione Policlinico Universitario Agostino Gemelli Irccs, president of Beautiful After Breast Cancer (Babc) Italia Onlus and first signatory of the study.

“The traditional breast reconstruction with definitive submuscular prosthesis (Dti, or Direct To Implant) is often considered the standard approach, regardless of the previous position of the prosthesis. However – continues Liliana Barone Adesi, medical director of the Plastic Surgery Unit, Fondazione Policlinico Agostino Gemelli Irccs University of Rome, Vice President of BABC Italia Onlus and signatory of the study – the recent trend to do a prepectoral reconstruction provides an innovative solution even in the majority of patients with previous both subglandular and submuscular prostheses. From the analysis conducted it emerged that the Immediate prepectoral reconstruction represents a feasible option for patients with a history of breast augmentation.Decisions regarding the reconstructive approach are influenced by variables such as the thickness of the mastectomy flap, the status of the previous prosthesis, and the condition of the periprosthetic capsule. But in each of these cases immediate reconstruction is possible.”