POST-ONCOLOGICAL BREAST RECONSTRUCTION BY MEANS COLEMAN’ TECHNIQUE: A RETROSPECTIVE STUDY

The approach to the concept of fat, and above all, its use is significatively changed over the years. Today it can be considered an optimal source to replace volume losses, above all because of his biocompatibility, for the easy way to withdraw it, and also, being an autologous tissue, for the reduction of rejection risk. Lipofilling can significantly improve the results of both conservative treatment after breast cancer (lumpectomy) and complete breast reconstruction with implants or flap. The purposes of this retrospective study have been the review and the analyses of patients submitted to mastectomy or lumpectomy for cancer and then reconstructed with latissimus dorsi flap or mammary prosthesis. We submitted them at Lipofilling technique in order to correct contour deformities or asymmetry. The study population was composed of 33 patients affected breast tumors and admitted to the Plastic Unit of S. Anna Hospital (Ferrara, Italy) between January 2006 and December 2010. Several variables were investigated: demographic, anatomic, type of resection, type of post-oncological reconstruction, surgeon performing the Coleman’ techniques, fat donor site, number of filling. Pearson Chi Square was used to detect those variables more associated with the need of three filling procedures. None of the studied variables had a significatives statistic results, but they have shown to be in line with what said in literature. Even if Lipofilling is a technique in use from different time we can’t understand which event is responsible of the necessity to perform more than one Lipofilling in order to obtain excellent result