This week, Audrey Rowen, PA-C, of The Center for Natural Breast Reconstruction answers your question about breast reconstruction.
Question: Who do I ask about my cancer treatment, my plastic surgeon, breast surgeon, or oncologist?
Answer: Thanks for reaching out to us! That is typically a question we would defer to an oncologist to answer as they can calculate your overall risk for recurrence and how different surgical vs. medical treatments can impact that risk. Technically a lumpectomy is only removing the cancerous area, leaving the rest of your breast tissue intact, so by surface area, a lumpectomy leaves more breast tissue that could potentially develop a new breast cancer, where a mastectomy is an attempt to remove all breast tissue.
The options for reconstruction are much more plentiful with mastectomy vs lumpectomy, but that shouldn’t necessarily sway you either way. If we can answer any reconstruction questions about whichever option for cancer treatment that you may choose, please let us know. But definitely, chat with your oncologist about what they feel is your best option for overall survival.
Have a question about breast reconstruction or post-surgical you’d like answered from our surgical team? Just ask!
