Articles

The goal of breast reconstruction after mastectomy is to restore symmetry – to create a breast with the shape and softness of the original that is in proportion with her opposite breast as well as the rest of a woman’s body. Matching a reconstructed breast to the existing natural breast may not be possible in […]

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Breast reconstruction recreates a breast mound either with implants or with the woman’s own tissue. In either case, nipple reconstruction can be performed in a separate surgery from the original breast reconstruction. Modern techniques in mastectomy and breast reconstruction offer women many options. Many women are candidates for nipple-sparing mastectomy, in which the nipple is […]

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More than 2.5 million women in the United States have had breast cancer. Many of them were treated with a combination of surgery, radiation, and sometimes chemotherapy that has removed or damaged lymph nodes and left them vulnerable to upper extremity lymphedema, a condition that can be disfiguring, painful and profoundly impair quality of life […]

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The American Cancer Society estimates that more than 268,000 new cases of breast cancer will be diagnosed in 2018. These women will be treated with various combinations of surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy that will leave them vulnerable to a range of side effects, one of which, lymphedema, might not show up until months or even […]

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Mammography is a specialized imaging system that uses low-dose x-rays to detect and diagnose breast cancer in its earliest stages when it is most treatable. Before the discovery of x-ray technology, most breast tumors could be detected only when they were large enough to be felt. Over many decades, advances in breast imaging have made […]

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In 2017, almost 400,000 women underwent surgery with breast implants – whether for cosmetic breast augmentation or for breast reconstruction after mastectomy. Despite significant improvement in implants since they were first introduced in the 1960s, however, studies by the implant manufacturers have shown that within seven years, 50% of women with breast implants will undergo […]

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A diagnosis of breast cancer profoundly impacts a woman’s life. In addition to coping with overwhelming emotions, she must make important choices about treatment and all of its implications. One of those is the financial ramifications of her illness, particularly if she will need surgical treatment of her breast. She will need to learn all […]

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The American Cancer Society estimates that more than 268,000 new cases of breast cancer will be diagnosed in 2018. But although the rates of breast reconstruction continue to increase, a 2014 study found that less than 40% of women who undergo mastectomy elect to undergo immediate reconstruction. (http://bit.ly/1yHmckj Journal of the American College of Surgeons, […]

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In the United States, only 30% of women who undergo mastectomy also undergo breast reconstruction. Of those women who undergo breast reconstruction, about 80% decide to undergo breast reconstruction with implants. Most women undergo implant-based breast reconstruction because it is simpler, scars are limited to the breasts, and the recovery is often faster immediately after […]

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The ancient Egyptians described breast cancer in papyrus writings as far back as 1600 B.C. Over the following centuries, many causes were suggested – from imbalances of bodily fluids to compression from tight clothing – and treatments ranged from cauterization to opium to arsenic. It was not until the 18th century that breast cancer came […]

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