Oncological Safety of Lipofilling in Patients with Breast Cancer: A Metaanalysis

Abstract Background Lipofilling is an increasingly popular technique for breast reconstruction following both mastectomy and breast-conserving surgery (BCS). Autologous fat transfer (Lipofilling), is a technique which has been used for many years in the setting of aesthetic breast surgery. Although gaining popularity in this setting, there are still questions regarding its oncological safety when used in patients being treated for breast cancer. Objective To systematically evaluate the current literature regarding the oncological safety of lipofilling in patients who underwent surgical treatment for breast cancer by performing a metaanalysis to investigate the recurrence rates and the incidence of complications after lipofilling. Data Sources: Medline databases (PubMed, Medscape, ScienceDirect. EMF-Portal) and all materi als available in the Internet till 2019. Data Extraction All the studies which did not fulfill the inclusion criteria were excluded. Study quality assessment included whether ethical approval was gained, eligibility criteria specified, appropriate controls, and adequate information and defined assessment measures. Conclusion Through this analysis, no evidence that lipofilling significantly increases the risk of locoregional recurrence when used as part of a breast reconstruction procedure after either mastectomy or BCS for breast cancer was found. Therefore, it can be considered an oncologically safe procedure in suitable patients with careful oncological follow-up. In the future, more longterm, adequately powered, multicentre controlled studies are needed. Additionally, more research should be carried out on the incidence of complications following lipofilling so that efforts can be made to prevent them and optimise fat graft survival. This is a pre-copyedited, author-produced PDF of an article accepted for publication in QJM: An International Journal of Medicine following peer review. The version of record [Oncological Safety of Lipofilling in Patients with Breast Cancer: A Metaanalysis. QJM: An International Journal of Medicine 114, Supplement_1 (2021)] is available online at: https://doi.org/10.1093/qjmed/hcab105.007. Deposited by shareyourpaper.org and openaccessbutton.org. We've taken reasonable steps to ensure this content doesn't violate copyright. However, if you think it does you can request a takedown by emailing help@openaccessbutton.org