The effect of adjuvant radiotherapy on clinical, imaging, and patient reported outcomes in implant-based breast reconstruction – Pilot study of a new scale for evaluating breast changes on MRI

Abstract

With a goal of reducing recurrence and improving survival, radiation therapy is part of the oncological treatment for some patients, however may cause adverse reactions, and result in poor reconstructive outcome and higher complication rate. Patient reported satisfaction with reconstruction is also negatively affected by radiation therapy. 1 Nelson J.A. Disa J.J. Breast reconstruction and radiation therapy: An update. Plast Reconstr Surg. 2017; 140 (5S Advances in Breast Reconstruction) 60S–68S Crossref Scopus (46) Google Scholar ,2 de Araujo T.B. Jue Xu M. Susarla S.M. Shmelev K. Jiang W. Pribaz J.J. Hergrueter C. Carty M.J. Caterson S. Chun Y.S Impact of prior unilateral chest wall radiotherapy on outcomes in bilateral breast reconstruction. Plast Reconstr Surg. 2016; 138 (575e–580e) Crossref PubMed Scopus (11) Google Scholar The purpose of this study is to assess clinical, radiological and patient reported outcomes in women undergoing mastectomy, immediate breast reconstruction and adjuvant radiation, and to assess correlations between outcomes, compared with non – radiated controls. We performed a pilot study proposing a new scale to classify breast changes on MRI.