Vikki | Breast Reconstruction
At 26, Vikki was diagnosed with DCIS (Ductal Carcinoma in Situ) which means that cells in the lining of the ducts of her breast tissue had started to turn cancerous. Having seen other family members battling cancer, Vikki made the brave decision to undergo a bilateral mastectomy.
At the time she chose not to have immediate reconstructive surgery because the only option available to her was to use the muscle and tissue from her back along with artificial implants. Sport and physical activity were an important part of her life so she did not want to risk losing any muscular strength in her upper body. Being a confident person Vikki chose to live with a prosthesis instead.
Four years later, Vikki realised that the prosthesis actually presented her with more problems than anticipated during her sports activities and by chance heard of a reconstructive technique that used tissue from your thigh called the TUG technique.
Miss Anita Hazari and Mr Martin Jones performed the surgery at The McIndoe Centre and within a couple of days of surgery she was able to put on a bra.
“I can’t explain how amazed and happy I felt. You would not have known that they weren’t my original breasts. Six days later I was discharged from hospital with a pair of beautiful breasts that looked and felt natural.”
Body tissue reconstruction, also known as ‘flap’ reconstruction, uses tissue transplanted from another part of your body to rebuild the breast.
This tissue includes skin, fat and sometimes muscle, which is used to make a new breast. The tissue may be taken from the lower abdomen (TRAM or DIEP flap), buttock (SCAP flap), inner thigh (TUG) or back (LD flap).
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