NIPPLE-AREOLAR COMPLEX RECONSTRUCTION

Course overview

BREAST CANCER IS THE MOST COMMON CANCER DIAGNOSIS IN WOMEN, WITH SURGICAL TREATMENT BEING ONE TENET OF ITS CARE. FOLLOWING BREAST CANCER RESECTION, BREAST RECONSTRUCTION IS COMMONLY PERFORMED TO RESTORE THE BREAST TO ITS NATIVE APPEARANCE. IN CASES OF NON–NIPPLE-SPARING MASTECTOMY, MALIGNANT INVOLVEMENT OF THE NIPPLE-AREOLAR COMPLEX (NAC), OR NAC COMPLICATIONS FOLLOWING PRIOR RECONSTRUCTION, THE NAC IS ABSENT ON THE RECONSTRUCTED BREAST. IF THE PATIENT DESIRES, NAC RECONSTRUCTION MAY BE UNDERTAKEN USING VARIOUS TECHNIQUES TYPICALLY PERFORMED AS THE LAST STEP IN BREAST RECONSTRUCTION. THIS ACTIVITY REVIEWS THE EVALUATION AND TREATMENT OF NAC ABSENCE WITH SUBSEQUENT NAC RECONSTRUCTION AND HIGHLIGHTS THE ROLE OF THE INTERPROFESSIONAL TEAM IN CARING FOR PATIENTS WHO UNDERGO NAC RECONSTRUCTION.