Main description:

The definitive guide to breast reconstruction-now completely revised and updated.

For more than twenty years, The Complete Guide to Breast Reconstruction (formerly The Breast Reconstruction Guidebook) has been an essential resource for individuals who are undergoing mastectomy and considering breast reconstruction. In this revised edition, two-time breast cancer survivor Kathy Steligo covers the critical information you need, from finding the right surgeon to considering options and making informed decisions.

Anyone considering a mastectomy faces a perplexing array of issues, questions, and decisions in their treatment options. This updated and expanded edition provides a comprehensive road map of the entire mastectomy and reconstruction experience. Steligo explains the advantages and disadvantages of postmastectomy options, including staying flat, using prostheses, and undergoing reconstruction with breast implants or a patient's own tissue. The extensively updated text includes new information on

* The benefits and limitations of traditional versus advanced procedures
* How mastectomy affects sensation, scarring, and projection
* What to expect from nipple-sparing mastectomy
* How reconstruction restores shape, size, and projection
* The pros and cons of saline and silicone breast implants
* The differences between muscle-sparing and muscle-sacrificing natural tissue reconstruction
* Improving results with fat grafting
* 3-D nipple tattooing
* How radiation therapy impacts reconstruction
* Male mastectomy and reconstruction
* The physical and emotional effects of surgery and recovery

Featuring before-and-after patient photos, expert commentaries, and patient stories, this guide describes the mastectomy and reconstructive journey from research to recovery so readers can make informed decisions about what is best for them.

Contents:

Foreword by Sue Friedman, DVM
Introduction
Part I: Mastectomy and Breast Reconstruction Basics
1. Chapter One: Why Mastectomy?
Inside the Breast
Surgeries to Diagnosis, Treat, or Reduce the Risk of Breast Cancer
Lumpectomy or Mastectomy?
2. Chapter Two: Considering Risk-Reducing Mastectomy
Should You Have Genetic Testing?
How Real Is Your Risk?
Risk-Reducing Mastectomy
Paying for Genetic Counseling, Testing, and Risk-Reducing Surgeries
3. Chapter Three: Mastectomy without Reconstruction
What to Expect
Going Flat
The Prosthesis Alternative
Paying for Mastectomy and Prostheses
4. Chapter Four: How Mastectomy Affects Reconstruction
Mastectomy Cause and Effect
Losing and Regaining Sensation
Skin-Sparing Mastectomy
Nipple-Sparing Mastectomy
5. Chapter Five: Breast Reconstruction Basics
Sorting through the Options
Timing Your Reconstruction
Health Matters
Coordinating Reconstruction with Treatment
Part II: Rebuilding the Breasts
6. Chapter Six: Reconstruction with Breast Implants
Implants Inside and Out
Prepectoral and Subpectoral Placement
Tissue Expander-to-Implant Reconstruction
Direct-to-Implant Reconstruction
Are They Safe?
Potential Problems and Fixes
7. Chapter Seven: The Expander Experience
Getting Your Fill
Minimizing Discomfort
Living in Limbo
Exchange Surgery
Potential Problems and Fixes
8. Chapter Eight: Autologous Tissue Flaps
Tissue Flap Basics
Muscle-Sparing and Muscle-Sacrificing Flaps
Borrowing from the Abdomen
Other Donor Sites and Procedures
Potential Problems and Fixes
Part III: Procedures to Improve Symmetry, Shape, and Appearance
9. Chapter Nine: Revision Procedures
Making a Good Reconstruction Better
Revisions for Reconstruction with Implants
Revisions for Autologous Reconstruction
Fixes with Fat
10. Chapter Ten: Modifying Your Opposite Breast
Breast Augmentation
Breast Lift
Breast Reduction
11. Chapter Eleven: Recreating Your Nipple and Areola
The Icing on the Cake
Building the Nipple
A Colorful Finish
Problems and Fixes
Part IV: What to Expect from Prep, Post-Op, Recovery, and Beyond
12. Chapter Twelve: Preparing for Surgery
Countdown: Four Weeks to Surgery
Two Weeks before Surgery
One Week to Go
The Day before Surgery
Reconstruction Day
13. Chapter Thirteen: What to Expect in the Hospital
Admitting and Pre-Op
In the OR
A Peek into Post-Op
Your First Day after Surgery
The Rest of Your Hospital Stay
14. Chapter Fourteen: Back Home
A Timetable for Healing
Managing Medication
Dealing with Drains
Tips for an Easier Recovery
Optimism Helps You Heal
Seeing Your New Breasts for the First Time
15. Chapter Fifteen: Dealing with Unexpected Problems
Inherent Risks of Surgery
Lingering Pain
Lymphedema
Reconstruction Do-Overs
Improving Scars
Strategies for Minimizing Complications
Managing Depression, Anxiety, and Body Image
16. Chapter Sixteen: Life after Reconstruction
Getting Back to Ordinary
Returning to Work
Dating, Intimacy, and Sex
Surveillance and Follow-up after Mastectomy
Part V: Finding Answers, Making Decisions
17. Chapter Seventeen: Shopping for Surgeons
Characteristics of an Ideal Plastic Surgeon
Where to Start
Pre-appointment Footwork
Make the Most of Your Consultation
The Value of a Second (or Third) Opinion
Tips for Travelers
18. Chapter Eighteen: Payment and Insurance Issues
Are You Covered?
Appealing When the Answer Is No
Help for the Uninsured and Underinsured
Other Types of Insurance
19. Chapter Nineteen: A Roadmap for Making Difficult Decisions
Moving in the Right Direction
Sources of Information and Inspiration
A Checklist for Making Decisions
20. Chapter Twenty: Information for Family and Friends
Hints for Family Members
Food for Thought for Partners and Spouses
Issues for Caregivers
Dos and Don'ts for Friends
Bibliography
Glossary
Resources
Acknowledgments
About the author
Index