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Breast cancer

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    • Ductal carcinoma in situ
    • Lobular carcinoma in situ
    • Early breast cancer
    • Paget's disease of the nipple
    • Inflammatory breast cancer
    • Locally advanced breast cancer
    • Metastatic breast cancer
    • Follow-up
      • Physical examinations
      • Breast imaging tests
      • Questions to ask
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      • When treatment stops
      • Facing the possibility of dying
      • Putting your affairs in order
      • Questions to ask
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      • What makes spread more likely
  • Living with
    • Practical aspects of diagnosis
      • Costs of treatment and prostheses
      • Travel schemes
      • Questions to ask
      • Choosing a cancer treatment
    • Physical changes
      • Body image
      • Menopause
      • Fertility
      • Lymphoedema
    • Emotional changes
      • How you might feel
      • Effects on partners
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      • Effects on family and friends
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      • Pain
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  • Home
  • Types
    • Ductal carcinoma in situ
    • Lobular carcinoma in situ
    • Early breast cancer
    • Paget's disease of the nipple
    • Inflammatory breast cancer
    • Locally advanced breast cancer
    • Metastatic breast cancer
  • Statistics
  • Risk factors
  • Symptoms
    • Ductal carcinoma in situ
    • Lobular carcinoma in situ
    • Early breast cancer
    • Paget’s disease of the nipple
    • Inflammatory breast cancer
    • Locally advanced breast cancer
    • Metastatic breast cancer
  • Awareness
  • Diagnosis
    • Tests
      • Triple test
    • Stages of breast cancer
    • Receiving a diagnosis
    • Diagnosis of early breast cancer
      • What the pathology report means
    • Diagnosis of ductal carcinoma in situ
      • What the DCIS pathology report means
    • Diagnosis when breast cancer spreads
    • Questions to ask
  • Treatment
    • Treatment team
      • Members of the team
      • Talking with health professionals
      • Questions to ask
    • Deciding about treatment
      • Travelling
      • Pregnancy
      • Tips for making decisions
      • Questions to ask
      • MammaPrint ® (70 gene signature) test
    • Surgery
      • Breast-conserving surgery
      • Mastectomy
      • Surgery to the armpit (axilla)
      • Surgery for metastatic breast cancer
      • Breast reconstruction
      • Choosing a surgeon
      • Questions to ask
      • Care after surgery
    • Radiotherapy
      • Early breast cancer
      • Metastatic breast cancer
      • Questions to ask
      • Skin care
      • Travelling
    • Chemotherapy
      • How does chemotherapy work?
      • Type of chemotherapy
      • What does chemotherapy involve?
      • Side effects
      • Questions to ask
    • Hormonal therapies
      • Hormone receptors
      • Types of hormonal therapy
      • Side effects
      • Menopause and oestrogen production
      • Deciding about hormonal therapies
      • Questions to ask
    • Targeted therapies
      • HER2 receptors
      • Types of targeted therapy
      • Questions to ask
    • Complementary & alternative therapies
      • Complementary therapies
      • Questions to ask
      • Where to find more information
    • Metastatic breast cancer palliative care
      • What is palliative care?
      • Accessing palliative care
      • Questions to ask
    • Ductal carcinoma in situ
    • Lobular carcinoma in situ
    • Early breast cancer
    • Paget's disease of the nipple
    • Inflammatory breast cancer
    • Locally advanced breast cancer
    • Metastatic breast cancer
    • Follow-up
      • Physical examinations
      • Breast imaging tests
      • Questions to ask
    • Advanced disease
      • When treatment stops
      • Facing the possibility of dying
      • Putting your affairs in order
      • Questions to ask
    • Recurrent and secondary cancer
      • What makes spread more likely
  • Living with
    • Practical aspects of diagnosis
      • Costs of treatment and prostheses
      • Travel schemes
      • Questions to ask
      • Choosing a cancer treatment
    • Physical changes
      • Body image
      • Menopause
      • Fertility
      • Lymphoedema
    • Emotional changes
      • How you might feel
      • Effects on partners
      • Effects on children
      • Effects on family and friends
    • Physical changes – metastatic
      • Pain
      • Symptoms and treatment side effects
    • Emotional changes – metastatic
      • Common feelings
    • Practical aspects - metastatic
      • Work
      • Financial support
      • How to access support at home
      • How to access support outside home
      • Questions to ask
  • Life after
    • Health
      • Fatigue
      • Poor sleep
      • Lymphoedema
      • Menopause
      • Pain
      • Diet
      • Exercise
    • Feelings
      • Finding a new ‘normal’
      • Fear of recurrence
      • Feelings of loss
      • Isolation
      • Anxiety and depression
      • Not sure how you feel?
    • Relationships
      • Partners
      • Children
      • Friends
      • Colleagues
    • Practical issues
      • Returning to work
      • Talking to colleagues about breast cancer
      • Questions to ask your health fund
  • Support
  • Clinical trials
    • What happens in a clinical trial?
    • What are the phases of a clinical trial?
    • Advantages and disadvantages
    • Questions to ask about clinical trials
    • When to find more information
  • Health professionals
    • Menopausal symptoms
    • Screening
    • Breast cancer diagnosis
    • Early breast cancer
    • Metastatic breast cancer
    • Ductal carcinoma
    • Lobular carcinoma
    • GP guides and resources
    • Follow-up care
    • Breast cancer Qstream

Search form

  1. Home
  2. Treatment
  3. Surgery
  4. Breast reconstruction
  • Treatment team
  • Deciding about treatment
  • Surgery
    • Breast-conserving surgery
    • Mastectomy
    • Surgery to the armpit (axilla)
    • Surgery for metastatic breast cancer
    • Breast reconstruction
      • Types of breast reconstruction
      • Breast reconstruction after preventive mastectomy
      • Breast reconstruction after a diagnosis
      • Timing of breast reconstruction
      • Deciding about breast reconstruction
      • External breast prostheses
      • Questions to ask
      • Living with a breast reconstruction
    • Choosing a surgeon
    • Questions to ask
    • Care after surgery
  • Radiotherapy
  • Chemotherapy
  • Hormonal therapies
  • Targeted therapies
  • Complementary & alternative therapies
  • Metastatic breast cancer palliative care
  • Ductal carcinoma in situ
  • Lobular carcinoma in situ
  • Early breast cancer
  • Paget's disease of the nipple
  • Inflammatory breast cancer
  • Locally advanced breast cancer
  • Metastatic breast cancer
  • Follow-up
  • Advanced disease
  • Recurrent and secondary cancer

Breast reconstruction

  • A|A

Breast reconstructionBreast reconstruction is surgery to rebuild a breast shape after mastectomy.

This section provides information about types of surgical reconstruction following mastectomy. For information on external prostheses please go to NSW Cancer Council's Understanding Breast Prostheses & Reconstruction.

There are two main types of breast reconstruction:

  • surgical insertion of a breast implant
  • transfer of a portion of tissue, skin and often muscle from another part of the body to the chest area – this is called a tissue flap breast reconstruction.

You do not have to make a decision about breast reconstruction straight away. Take time to review the information available. You may not get through it all in one sitting, but may look through this information over time.

Breast reconstruction is not for everyone. A woman may decide for a variety of reasons that she does not want to have a breast reconstruction. Many women choose not to have a breast reconstruction after mastectomy. Some are happy to live with their post mastectomy shape, and others use an external breast prosthesis to recreate breast shape. Information about external breast prosthesis can also be found within this section.

Mastectomy may be used to reduce the risk of breast cancer developing in women with a high risk of breast cancer. This is called preventative or prophylactic mastectomy. Mastectomy may also be used to treat breast cancer in women who have been diagnosed with the disease. Use the links below to find information that applies to your situation:

  • Breast reconstruction for women considering preventative (prophylactic) mastectomy
  • Breast reconstruction for women with a breast cancer diagnosis
  • Making decisions about breast reconstruction
  • Types of breast reconstruction

After reviewing the information relevant to your situation you are encouraged to discuss the information and any questions you may have with your health care professionals.

The images provided on this site are a guide to surgical outcomes and may vary in each individual case.

Find out more about:

  • Types of breast reconstruction
  • Breast reconstruction for women after preventative (prophylactic) mastectomy
  • Breast reconstruction for women after a diagnosis
  • Timing of breast reconstruction
  • Deciding about breast reconstruction
  • External breast prostheses
  • Questions to ask about breast reconstruction

Disclaimer

While Cancer Australia develops material based on the best available evidence, this information is not intended to be used as a substitute for an independent health professional’s advice. Cancer Australia does not accept any liability for any injury, loss or damage incurred by use of or reliance on the information contained in this document.

  • Last Updated
  • Relevant Links
updated: Tue, 26/02/2019 - 12:17
  • Australian Cancer Trials

Related information

What is cancer?
What is cancer?

Cancer is a disease of the cells, which are the body’s basic building blocks.

Treatment and side effects
Treatment and side effects

The treatment that your doctors recommend will depend on the type of cancer you have, how advanced it is, and other personal factors.

Living with cancer
Living with cancer

A diagnosis of cancer marks the beginning of a journey full of emotional, psychological, physical and practical challenges.

Life after cancer
Life after cancer

While looking forward to finishing their cancer treatment and getting on with life, for some people, the end of treatment can also be a confusing or worrying time.

A-Z List of Cancer Types

Information on more than 70 types of cancer

  • Bladder cancer
  • Bowel cancer
  • Brain cancer
  • Breast cancer
  • Breast cancer in men
  • Breast cancer in young women
  • Cervical cancer
  • Children's Cancer
  • Endometrial cancer
  • Fallopian tube cancer
  • Gestational trophoblastic disease
  • Gynaecological cancers
  • Head & neck cancers
  • Kidney cancer
  • Leukaemia
  • Liver cancer
  • Lung cancer
  • Lymphoma
  • Melanoma of the skin
  • Mesothelioma
  • Myeloma
  • Neuroendocrine tumours
  • Oesophageal cancer
  • Ovarian cancer
  • Pancreatic cancer
  • Prostate cancer
  • Sarcoma
  • Stomach cancer
  • Testicular cancer
  • Thyroid cancer
  • Unknown primary
  • Uterine sarcoma
  • Vaginal cancer
  • Vulval cancer

About Cancer Australia

Cancer Australia was established by the Australian Government in 2006 to benefit all Australians affected by cancer, and their families and carers. Cancer Australia aims to reduce the impact of cancer, address disparities and improve outcomes for people affected by cancer by leading and coordinating national, evidence-based interventions across the continuum of care.

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