What to consider – flap reconstruction

Benefits

Drawbacks

• Flap reconstruction is permanent once the breast has healed.
• Most methods use only your own living tissue to create the breast. This often gives a better match to the other breast. This may be important to you, especially when you are naked.
• The flap maintains its look and feel over the long term and generally adjusts if your body’s weight changes.
• Using your own tissue means there is no risk of possible rupture.
• There is less chance of long-term complications.
• If you have a flap reconstruction, you are less likely to need further surgery in the future than you would if you have an implant reconstruction.
• Having a reconstruction may make you more confident when naked.

• Flap reconstruction is more extensive than implant reconstruction. Additional treatment or follow-up surgeries are sometimes needed. The operation will take several hours and you may need to stay in hospital for about a week.
• Recovery takes longer than after an implant reconstruction as there are 2 wounds that have to heal – a wound at the site where the flap was taken and a wound on the breast that was reconstructed.
• Risks include infection and the flap not healing properly.
• Surgery usually causes more than one scar (but these fade).
• Depending on the type of flap, you may also need an implant.
• DIEP and TRAM procedures can be done only once.
• There is a small risk of hernia with abdominal flaps.