Breast reconstruction in Tunisia

Studies show that women qualifying for breast reconstruction usually don’t know all their treatment options. 70% of female patients with breast cancer are uninformed about breast reconstruction.

Knowing that there are treatments to restore the breast after a mastectomy is an additional strength to manage the condition. Breast reconstruction plays a major role in the patient’s well-being.

Technical and technological advances now allow women to reaffirm their femininity and close a chapter of their lives. Breast reconstruction can be carried out with breast implants or with tissue from other parts of the patient’s body. Those two methods can also be combined to offer natural looking breast. Dr Balti will choose an approach that suits your objectives and body type.

Certain women choose to have their breast reconstruction done at the same time as the mastectomy whereas others choose to wait until they recover from the initial surgery and possible additional cancer treatments. There is no right choice, you have to make your decision by taking your doctor’s recommendations into account, after all, breast reconstruction will always be an option. If you’re not ready at the time of your mastectomy, no one should stop you from waiting.

Reconstruction techniques

Dr Balti will recreate proportioned and balanced breasts. When the skin left after mastectomy is of good quality, breast augmentation with implants may be enough. If that’s not the case, tissues must be grafted to reconstruct the breasts :

• Skin and muscle tissues can be harvested from the abdomen, the thighs or the back.

• Tissue expansion : an inflatable device is inserted in the breast to progressively restore the breast’s skin envelope. Once tissue expansion is satisfactory, breast implants can be inserted.

• The nipple-areolar complex can be recreated with a tattoo or by grafting tissue from the vaginal lips.