Breast Reconstruction Surgery | Conditions & Treatments

Breast Reconstruction

UR Medicine has experts in all facets of breast surgery, including board-certified surgeons with specialized training in diagnosing, treating and providing reconstructive surgical care for breast cancer and benign breast disease. No matter the type of breast surgery you need, our providers are here for you for every step of the process.

Most breast cancer patients have some type of surgery to remove the tumor and many have surgical reconstruction of the breasts during or after treatment. Surgical choices are often made based on the size and location of the tumor, the type of breast cancer that was diagnosed, and the patient's wishes.

Types of cancer-related breast surgeries include:

Lumpectomy — surgery to remove cancer or other abnormal tissue and a small amount of the healthy tissue that surrounds it from your breast.
Mastectomy — surgery to remove all breast tissue from your breast and may remove the breast skin and nipple.
Reconstruction — surgery to create a new breast shape in place of a breast that has been removed (mastectomy). It can be done with implants or with tissue from another part of your body. Sometimes both are used to rebuild a breast shape. The breast mound created comes as close as possible to the shape and look of a natural breast.

UR Medicine's Approach

In some cases, we can proceed with breast reconstruction at the same time as your cancer surgery. In others, we will need to wait until you have healed to perform breast reconstruction surgery.

Some procedures use implants, a silicone shell filled with either a saline (salt water) solution or a silicone gel. Others use a flap of tissue from another part of the body, such as the abdomen or the back. This flap may be used alone or with an implant.

Types of Reconstructive Breast Surgeries

Breast Implants and Tissue Expanders: Surgery that uses an implant, a silicone shell filled with either saline or a silicone gel, and a tissue expander, which makes room for the implant.
TRAM (Transverse Rectus Abdominus Muscle) Flap: Tissue (skin, fat and muscle) is taken from the lower abdomen to form a natural looking breast.
Latissimus Dorsi Flap: Tissue (skin, fat and muscle) is taken from the latissimus dorsi muscle in the back to form a natural looking breast.
DIEP (Deep Inferior Epigastric Perforator) Flap: Skin and fat tissue is taken from the lower abdomen to form a natural looking breast.
SIEA (Superficial Inferior Epigastric Artery) Flap: Skin and fat tissue is taken from the lower abdomen to form a natural looking breast, without manipulating the muscles.
Revisional Breast Surgery: Replace existing breast implants with new implants, improving appearance while updating the implant material. Additional adjunct procedures include fat grafting to add volume to the breasts and nipple-areolar reconstruction.

No procedure is necessarily better than another for reconstructive breast surgery, but some procedures may not be medically appropriate for every kind of mastectomy. In your meeting with your cancer surgeon and breast reconstruction surgeon, we will review the methods that are right for the kind of mastectomy you will receive.

After a tumor is removed, breast reconstruction surgery can help patients feel like themselves again. UR Medicine Plastic Surgery becomes your partner in assisting you to take this step safely, with a solution that will be best for you and your body based on your medical and treatment history.

What Sets Us Apart?

UR Medicine’s Comprehensive Breast Center is home to some of the nation’s top breast experts. Our providers specialize in detecting, treating, and supporting patients with breast cancer. Our multi-disciplinary team of oncology- and surgical-certified specialists is dedicated to breast care.

Studies show that cancer patients treated by specialists have better outcomes. Each of our surgeons are fellowship-trained—the highest level of training in their specialties. They also work with medical and radiation oncologists, pathologists, nutritionists, and other team members to ensure the best result for each patient. This comprehensive approach to cancer care and recovery offers you both a specialized understanding of specific diseases and multi-disciplinary care.

Our specialists perform hundreds of procedures and surgeries every year, so your breast surgery care is always in the hands of well-practiced experts. As part of the University of Rochester Medical Center, our surgeons have strong experience in caring for the full range of breast conditions, including treating more complex cases and unusual complications than most physicians in the Rochester area.

We work collaboratively to draw on a diverse set of skills and give patients comprehensive care. Many of our surgeons are teachers and conduct research, so they are up to date on the latest findings and techniques in their field. We bring patients the latest innovations in treatment, clinical trials, and supportive care models.