English

Abstract

BACKGROUND The most common cancer among urban Indian women is breast cancer. Mastectomy causes loss of body image and negatively impacts the quality of life. Restoration of body image is an important step for breast cancer survivors. Recent reconstruction options are autologous or implant-based reconstruction or combined approach. This present clinical study was done to describe about latissimus dorsi based breast reconstruction (BR) at a tertiary health centre. METHODS This retrospective study was conducted at a tertiary health care centre from Jun 2018 to Dec 2020. Eligible desiring patients’ divided into the small, medium and large breasts and were willing to undergo BR were taken up for surgery. Patients considered as suitable candidates were further assessed for the option of reconstruction by latissimus dorsi (LD) flap, LD flap with an implant. All the patients were fully explained about the procedure. RESULTS The total number of mastectomies were 158 and breast reconstruction was done in 45 patients, with a percentage of 29 %. In our study, majority of the patients (91.1 %) underwent immediate breast reconstruction. Reconstructive methods used in our study were autologous LD flap (64.4 %), LD flap with silicone implant (24.2 %) and pedicled transverse rectus abdominis myocutaneous (TRAM) flap (11.2 %) based on the size of the contralateral breast. The most common type of reconstruction in our study was the LD flap (64.4 %). CONCLUSIONS Immediate reconstruction of mastectomy defects was offered to all interested patients. Autologous or implant-based can be done safely with minimum morbidity. Latissimus dorsi flap-based breast reconstruction is a cost-effective, safe, reliable method at a tertiary health centre. KEY WORDS Breast Reconstruction, Flap, LD Flap, Implant