Neo-adjuvant or adjuvant chemo-radiation remains one of the pillars for breast cancer treatment. (1, 2) Administration of radiation before or after autologous soft tissue reconstruction has being shown to alter the aesthetics of the new breast. (3-7) Currently, the optimal timing for autologous breast reconstruction in patients who need postmastectomy radiotherapy remains in debate between surgeons. (8) Various studies have tried to address this problem. However, most of them have been retrospective studies (3, 7, 9) and the prospective ones have not have enough patients, have mixed population of patients or the radiation protocols have not been normalized. (5, 6, 10)
We hypothesize that immediate autologous reconstruction patients who undergo subsequent radiation therapy have equivalent aesthetic outcome when compared to those in whom reconstruction is delayed until after radiation, with the additional benefit of avoiding the psychological side effects of breast amputation.
