Fat grafting in immediate breast reconstruction. Avoiding breast sequelae.

Background: The remarkable increase that breast-conserving surgery has been experiencing throughout the last decades is as much undeniable as the imposition of the immediate reconstruction as the gold-standard treatment regarding breast reconstruction. Nevertheless, these trends conflict since we do not have a satisfactory immediate reconstruction method for breast-conserving surgery. This work shows the technique we have developed to solve this problem through autologous fat grafting ensuring the same oncological safety.

Methods: We present the preliminary results of 37 immediate reconstructions of lumpectomies and quadrantectomies through autologous fat grafting of lumpectomies. Patients have been chosen by a multidisciplinary committee following special criteria based on their low-risk pathology, having undergone different diagnostic tests previous to the resection and 1 year postoperative monitoring by qualified observers. Also, a satisfaction survey has been performed.

Results: In all cases studied, with a year follow-up, we found excellent aesthetic outcomes with no presence of the feared scar retractions and deformities, even after radiotherapy. According to patient surveys, the satisfaction rate was also very high. No important complications, either acute or chronic, have been observed from the implementation of this technique.

Conclusion: This is a useful, innovative technique, having good aesthetic results, decreasing the incidence of aesthetic sequelae, commonly seen in simple lumpectomies without reconstruction. The complication rate is low, and oncological safety is not compromised.