[Immediate reconstruction of the breast following mastectomy]

Immediate reconstruction of the breast has become an integral part of treatment of breast cancer during the last years. Several studies have reported that breast cancer patients who undergo immediate reconstruction have the same survival rates as unreconstructed patients and that reconstruction does not adversely affect the natural course of breast cancer. Since 1983 immediate reconstruction has been performed in 87 patients at our institution. It has been demonstrated that the psychological trauma has been dramatically reduced and that many patients will accept mastectomy almost with a sense of relief, when immediate reconstruction can be offered.